The nature of the cross-scale connections between the inertial-range turbulent energy cascade and the small-scale kinetic processes in collisionless plasmas is explored through the analysis of two-dimensional hybrid Vlasov–Maxwell numerical simulation (HVM), with $\unicode[STIX]{x1D6FC}$ particles, and through a proxy of the turbulent energy transfer rate, namely the local energy transfer (LET) rate. Correlations between pairs of variables, including those related to kinetic processes and to deviation from Maxwellian distributions, are first evidenced. Then, the general properties and the statistical scaling laws of the LET are described, confirming its reliability for the description of the turbulent cascade and revealing its textured topology. Finally, the connection between such proxy and the diagnostic variables is explored using conditional averaging, showing that several quantities are enhanced in the presence of large positive energy flux, and reduced near sites of negative flux. These observations can help in determining which processes are involved in the dissipation of energy at small scales, as for example the ion-cyclotron or mirror instabilities typically associated with perpendicular anisotropy of temperature.

It is demonstrated that the azimuthal magnetorotational instability (AMRI) also works with radially increasing rotation rates contrary to the standard magnetorotational instability for axial fields which requires negative shear. The stability against non-axisymmetric perturbations of a conducting Taylor–Couette flow with positive shear under the influence of a toroidal magnetic field is considered if the background field between the cylinders is current free. For small magnetic Prandtl number $Pm\rightarrow 0$ the curves of neutral stability converge in the (Hartmann number,Reynolds number) plane approximating the stability curve obtained in the inductionless limit $Pm=0$. The numerical solutions for $Pm=0$ indicate the existence of a lower limit of the shear rate. For large $Pm$ the curves scale with the magnetic Reynolds number of the outer cylinder but the flow is always stable for magnetic Prandtl number unity as is typical for double-diffusive instabilities. We are particularly interested to know the minimum Hartmann number for neutral stability. For models with resting or almost resting inner cylinder and with perfectly conducting cylinder material the minimum Hartmann number occurs for a radius ratio of $r_{\text{in}}=0.9$. The corresponding critical Reynolds numbers are smaller than $10^{4}$.

We discuss the effect of different types of fluctuations on dynamos generated in the limit of scale separation. We first recall that the magnetic field observed in the VKS (von Karman flow of liquid sodium) experiment is not the one that would be generated by the mean flow alone and that smaller scale turbulent fluctuations therefore play an important role. We then consider how velocity fluctuations affect the dynamo threshold in the framework of mean-field magnetohydrodynamics. We show that the detrimental effect of turbulent fluctuations observed with many flows disappears in the case of helical flows with scale separation. We also find that fluctuations of the electrical conductivity of the fluid, for instance related to temperature fluctuations in convective flows, provide an efficient mechanism for dynamo action. Finally, we conclude by describing an experimental configuration that could be used to test the validity of mean-field magnetohydrodynamics in strongly turbulent flows.

Mean field electrodynamics (MFE) facilitates practical modelling of secular, large scale properties of astrophysical or laboratory systems with fluctuations. Practitioners commonly assume wide scale separation between mean and fluctuating quantities, to justify equality of ensemble and spatial or temporal averages. Often however, real systems do not exhibit such scale separation. This raises two questions: (I) What are the appropriate generalized equations of MFE in the presence of mesoscale fluctuations? (II) How precise are theoretical predictions from MFE? We address both by first deriving the equations of MFE for different types of averaging, along with mesoscale correction terms that depend on the ratio of averaging scale to variation scale of the mean. We then show that even if these terms are small, predictions of MFE can still have a significant precision error. This error has an intrinsic contribution from the dynamo input parameters and a filtering contribution from differences in the way observations and theory are projected through the measurement kernel. Minimizing the sum of these contributions can produce an optimal scale of averaging that makes the theory maximally precise. The precision error is important to quantify when comparing to observations because it quantifies the resolution of predictive power. We exemplify these principles for galactic dynamos, comment on broader implications, and identify possibilities for further work.

A dynamo driven by motions unaffected by viscous forces is termed ‘magnetostrophic’, but cannot be found through today’s numerical simulations, which require substantial viscosity to stabilize solutions of the full magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) dynamo equations. By using an alternative numerical technique, proposed by Taylor (Proc. R. Soc. Lond. A, vol. 274, 1963, pp. 274–283), we recently obtained the first magnetostrophic dynamo solutions ever derived (Wu & Roberts, Geophys. Astrophys. Fluid Dyn., vol. 109, 2014, pp. 84–110). These were axisymmetric and of mean-field type. In an earlier paper (Roberts & Wu, Geophys. Astrophys. Fluid Dyn., vol. 108, 2014, pp. 696–715), we proposed an extension of Taylor’s method. Here we explore its numerical implications, comparing them to the consequences of Taylor’s original proposal. One of the differences between the two approaches is that our modification retains torsional waves but Taylor’s theory does not. A more important difference is that our extension of Taylor’s method is, for reasons presented here, the most general possible that does not suffer from the limitations imposed by viscosity on today’s numerical simulations.

We discuss a mean-field theory of the generation of large-scale vorticity in a rotating density stratified developed turbulence with inhomogeneous kinetic helicity. We show that the large-scale non-uniform flow is produced due to either a combined action of a density stratified rotating turbulence and uniform kinetic helicity or a combined effect of a rotating incompressible turbulence and inhomogeneous kinetic helicity. These effects result in the formation of a large-scale shear, and in turn its interaction with the small-scale turbulence causes an excitation of the large-scale instability (known as a vorticity dynamo) due to a combined effect of the large-scale shear and Reynolds stress-induced generation of the mean vorticity. The latter is due to the effect of large-scale shear on the Reynolds stress. A fast rotation suppresses this large-scale instability.

We study standing waves on the surface of a tangential discontinuity in an incompressible plasma. The plasma is moving with constant velocity at one side of the discontinuity, while it is at rest at the other side. The moving plasma is ideal and the plasma at rest is viscous. We only consider the long wavelength limit where the viscous Reynolds number is large. A standing wave is a superposition of a forward and a backward wave. When the flow speed is between the critical speed and the Kelvin–Helmholtz threshold the backward wave is a negative energy wave, while the forward wave is always a positive energy wave. We show that viscosity causes the standing wave to grow. Its increment is equal to the difference between the negative energy wave increment and the positive energy wave decrement.

A mean-field theory of differential rotation in a density stratified turbulent convection has been developed. This theory is based on the combined effects of the turbulent heat flux and anisotropy of turbulent convection on the Reynolds stress. A coupled system of dynamical budget equations consisting in the equations for the Reynolds stress, the entropy fluctuations and the turbulent heat flux has been solved. To close the system of these equations, the spectral $\unicode[STIX]{x1D70F}$ approach, which is valid for large Reynolds and Péclet numbers, has been applied. The adopted model of the background turbulent convection takes into account an increase of the turbulence anisotropy and a decrease of the turbulent correlation time with the rotation rate. This theory yields the radial profile of the differential rotation which is in agreement with that for the solar differential rotation.

In a reactor plasma like demonstration power station (DEMO), when using the radio frequency (RF) for heating or current drive in the lower hybrid (LH) frequency range (Franke et al., Fusion Engng Des., vol. 96–97, 2015, p. 46; Cardinali et al., Plasma Phys. Control. Fusion, vol. 59, 2017, 074002), a large fraction of the ion population (the continuously born $\unicode[STIX]{x1D6FC}$-particle, and/or the neutral beam injection (NBI) injected ions) is characterized by a non-thermal distribution function. The interaction (propagation and absorption) of the LH wave must be reformulated by considering the quasi-linear approach for each species separately. The collisional slowing down of such an ion population in a background of an electron and ion plasma is balanced by a quasi-linear diffusion in velocity space due to the propagating electromagnetic wave. In this paper, both propagations are considered by including the ion distribution function, solution of the Fokker–Planck equation, which describes the collisional dynamics of the $\unicode[STIX]{x1D6FC}$-particles including the effects of frictional slowing down, energy diffusion and pitch-angle scattering. Analytical solutions of the Fokker–Planck equation for the distribution function of $\unicode[STIX]{x1D6FC}$-particles with a background of ions and electrons at steady state are included in the calculation of the dielectric tensor. In the LH frequency domain, ray tracing (including quasi-linear damping), can be analytically solved by iterating with the Fokker–Planck solution, and the interaction of the LH wave with $\unicode[STIX]{x1D6FC}$-particles, thermal ions and electrons can be accounted self-consistently and the current drive efficiency can be evaluated in this more general scenario.

Kinetic ballooning modes (KBMs) are investigated by means of linear electromagnetic gyrokinetic (GK) simulations in the stellarator Wendelstein 7-X (W7-X), for high-$\unicode[STIX]{x1D6FD}$ plasmas, where $\unicode[STIX]{x1D6FD}$ is the ratio of thermal to magnetic plasma pressure. The analysis shows suppression of ion-temperature-gradient (ITG) and trapped particle modes (TEM) by finite-$\unicode[STIX]{x1D6FD}$ effects and destabilization of KBMs at high $\unicode[STIX]{x1D6FD}$. The results are compared with a generic tokamak case. We show that, for large pressure gradients, the frequency of KBMs evaluated by the GENE code is in agreement with the analytical prediction of the diamagnetic modification of the ideal magnetohydrodynamic limit in W7-X general geometry. Thresholds for destabilization of the KBM are predicted for different W7-X equilibrium configurations. We discuss the relation of these thresholds to the ideal magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) stability properties of the corresponding equilibria.

In most numerical simulations of the Earth’s core the dynamo is located outside the tangent cylinder and, in a zero-order sense, takes the form of a classical $\unicode[STIX]{x1D6FC}^{2}$ dynamo. Such a dynamo usually requires a distribution of helicity, $h$, which is asymmetric about the equator and in the simulations it is observed that, outside the tangent cylinder, the helicity is predominantly negative in the north and positive in the south. If we are to extrapolate the results of these simulations to the planets, we must understand how this asymmetry in helicity is established and ask if the same mechanism is likely to operate in a planet. In some of the early numerical dynamos, which were too viscous by a factor of at least $10^{9}$, as measured by the Ekman number, the asymmetric helicity distribution was attributed to Ekman pumping. However, Ekman pumping plays much less of a role in more recent, and less viscous, numerical dynamos, and almost certainly plays no significant role in the core of a planet. So the question remains: what establishes the asymmetric helicity distribution in the simulations and is this mechanism likely to carry over to planetary cores? In this paper we review the evidence that planetary dynamos, and their numerical analogues, might be maintained by helical waves, especially inertial waves, excited in and around the equatorial regions. This cartoon arises from the observation that there tends to be a statistical bias in the buoyancy flux towards the equatorial regions, and so waves are preferentially excited there. Moreover, upward (downward) propagating inertial waves carry negative (positive) helicity, which leads naturally to a segregation in $h$.

The predictions of mean-field electrodynamics can now be probed using direct numerical simulations of random flows and magnetic fields. When modelling astrophysical magnetohydrodynamics, it is important to verify that such simulations are in agreement with observations. One of the main challenges in this area is to identify robust quantitative measures to compare structures found in simulations with those inferred from astrophysical observations. A similar challenge is to compare quantitatively results from different simulations. Topological data analysis offers a range of techniques, including the Betti numbers and persistence diagrams, that can be used to facilitate such a comparison. After describing these tools, we first apply them to synthetic random fields and demonstrate that, when the data are standardized in a straightforward manner, some topological measures are insensitive to either large-scale trends or the resolution of the data. Focusing upon one particular astrophysical example, we apply topological data analysis to H i observations of the turbulent interstellar medium (ISM) in the Milky Way and to recent magnetohydrodynamic simulations of the random, strongly compressible ISM. We stress that these topological techniques are generic and could be applied to any complex, multi-dimensional random field.

This paper summarizes the results of an experimental program at Caltech wherein magnetohydrodynamically driven plasma jets are created and diagnosed. The theory modelling these jets, the main experimental results and their relevance to astrophysical jets are presented. The model explains how the jets are driven and why they self-collimate. Characteristic kink and Rayleigh–Taylor instabilities are shown to occur and the ramifications of these instabilities are discussed. Extending the experimental results to the astrophysical situation reveals a shortcoming in ideal magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) that must be remedied by replacing the ideal MHD Ohm’s law by the generalized Ohm’s law. It is shown that when the generalized Ohm’s law is used and the consequences of weak ionization are taken into account, an accretion disk behaves much like the electrodes, mass source and power supply used in the experiment.

The problem of pressure driven infernal type perturbations near the plasma edge is addressed analytically for a circular limited tokamak configuration which presents an edge flattened safety factor. The plasma is separated from a metallic wall, either ideally conducting or resistive, by a vacuum region. The dispersion relation for such types of instabilities is derived and discussed for two classes of equilibrium profiles for pressure and mass density.

High-energy ions, such as fusion alphas and ions from external heating, can be very sensitive to any non-axisymmetric features in the confining magnetic field due to their collisionless nature. Since understanding the confinement properties of these ions is crucial for ITER (the first fusion reactor currently under construction in Cadarache, France) and beyond, it is of ultimate importance that the predictive simulations are accurate and free of numerical distortions. Adding the third dimension comes at substantial computational cost, calling for new kinds of approaches and computational platforms. In this contribution we discuss what new features, even new physics, the non-axisymmetry brings with it and how one could cope with the ever-increasing demands on both memory and CPU resources. In the end, a few simulation examples with a varying level of non-axisymmetry are given.

Large-angle Coulomb collisions lead to an avalanching generation of runaway electrons in a plasma. We present the first fully conservative large-angle collision operator, derived from the relativistic Boltzmann operator. The relation to previous models for large-angle collisions is investigated, and their validity assessed. We present a form of the generalized collision operator which is suitable for implementation in a numerical kinetic equation solver, and demonstrate the effect on the runaway-electron growth rate. Finally we consider the reverse avalanche effect, where runaways are slowed down by large-angle collisions, and show that the choice of operator is important if the electric field is close to the avalanche threshold.

Using a variational optimization method we find the smallest flow perturbations that can trigger kinematic dynamo action in Kolmogorov flow. In comparison to previous work, a second-order mean field dynamo model is used to track down the optimal dynamos in the high magnetic Reynolds number limit ($Rm$). The magnitude of minimal perturbation flows decays inversely proportional to the magnetic Reynolds number. We reveal the asymptotic high-$Rm$ structure of the optimal flow perturbation and the magnetic eigenmode. We identify the optimal dynamo as of $\unicode[STIX]{x1D6FC}{-}\unicode[STIX]{x1D6FA}$ type, with magnetic fluctuations that localize on a critical layer.

We want to study the connections between the magnetic field generated inside the Sun and the solar wind impacting Earth, especially the influence of north–south asymmetry on the magnetic and velocity fields. We study a solar-like 11-year cycle in a quasi-static way: an asymmetric dynamo field is generated through a 2.5-dimensional (2.5-D) flux-transport model with the Babcock–Leighton mechanism, and then is used as bottom boundary condition for compressible 2.5-D simulations of the solar wind. We recover solar values for the mass loss rate, the spin-down time scale and the Alfvén radius, and are able to reproduce the observed delay in latitudinal variations of the wind and the general wind structure observed for the Sun. We show that the phase lag between the energy of the dipole component and the total surface magnetic energy has a strong influence on the amplitude of the variations of global quantities. We show in particular that the magnetic torque variations can be linked to topological variations during a magnetic cycle, while variations in the mass loss rate appear to be driven by variations of the magnetic energy.

Radio frequency (RF) waves are routinely used in tokamak fusion plasmas for plasma heating, current control, as well as in diagnostics. These waves are excited by antenna structures placed near the tokamak’s wall and they have to propagate through a turbulent layer known as the scrape-off layer, before reaching the core plasma (which is their target). This layer exhibits coherent density fluctuations in the form of filaments and blobs. The scattering processes of RF plane waves by a single filament is studied with the assumption that the filament has a cylindrical shape and infinite length. Furthermore, besides the major toroidal component of the externally imposed magnetic field, there is also a small poloidal magnetic field component. Considering also that the cylindrical filament’s axis is not necessarily aligned with the toroidal direction, the total magnetic field is in general neither aligned with the axis of the cylinder nor with the toroidal direction. The investigation concerns the case of electron cyclotron (EC) waves (of frequency $f_{0}=170~\text{GHz}$) for tokamak applications. The study covers a variety of density contrasts between the filament and the ambient plasma, different magnetic field inclinations with respect to the cylinder axis (for the same magnitude of magnetic induction $B=4.5T$) and a wide range of filament radii.

Pedestal modelling is crucial to predict the performance of future fusion devices. Current modelling efforts suffer either from a lack of kinetic physics, or an excess of computational complexity. To ameliorate these problems, we take a first-principles multiscale approach to the pedestal. We will present three separate sets of equations, covering the dynamics of edge localised modes (ELMs), the inter-ELM pedestal and pedestal turbulence, respectively. Precisely how these equations should be coupled to each other is covered in detail. This framework is completely self-consistent; it is derived from first principles by means of an asymptotic expansion of the fundamental Vlasov–Landau–Maxwell system in appropriate small parameters. The derivation exploits the narrowness of the pedestal region, the smallness of the thermal gyroradius and the low plasma $\unicode[STIX]{x1D6FD}$ (the ratio of thermal to magnetic pressures) typical of current pedestal operation to achieve its simplifications. The relationship between this framework and gyrokinetics is analysed, and possibilities to directly match our systems of equations onto multiscale gyrokinetics are explored. A detailed comparison between our model and other models in the literature is performed. Finally, the potential for matching this framework onto an open-field-line region is briefly discussed.