Time-Resolved Observation of Discrete and Continuous Magnetohydrodynamic Dynamo in the Reversed-Field Pinch Edge

Abstract

We report the first experimental verification of the magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) dynamo in the reversed-field pinch (RFP). A burst of MHD dynamo electric field is observed during the sawtooth crash, followed by an increase in the local parallel current in the Madison Symmetric Torus RFP edge. By measuring each term, the parallel MHD mean-field Ohm's law is observed to hold within experimental error bars both between and during sawtooth crashes.