1993•Physics of Fluids B Plasma PhysicsRequires access
Magnetic helicity and dynamos
Allen H. Boozer
Open publisher page 32 citations
Abstract
A magnetic field that is maintained by the dynamo action of a conducting fluid must have a nonvanishing magnetic helicity. The constraint of helicity preservation implies that a dynamo is more easily produced if the electric potential varies in the surface of the dynamo. For the Earth the north–south potential variation should be of the order of a hundred volts. The energetics and thermodynamic efficiency of a heat-driven dynamo are also considered.