Diffusion and Severing of Magnetic Lines of Force.

Abstract

The general asymptotic form for the magnetic field in a diffusing flux tube is developed and applied to the problem of severing magnetic lines of force in a medium with finite electrical conductivity Calculations of the details of the severing and reconnection of lines of force are given for the formation of an idealized free meridional magnetic ring in a hydromagnetic dynamo, for the merging of idealized neighboring rings, and for the straightening of the lines in a twisted tube, in order to illustrate the general qualitative features of these processes as they would presumably occur in the core of the earth. The problem of two nearly intersecting slender flux tubes is considered in order to demonstrate how the lines of force of the lesser tube are diverted into the denser tube.