The Turbulent Magnetic Diffusivity Tensor for Time-Dependent Mean Fields

Abstract

We re-examine the nature of the turbulent magnetic diffusivity tensor of mean field electrodynamics and show that an inconsistency arises if it is calculated via consideration of time-independent magnetic fields. Specifically, the predicted growth rate of the mean magnetic field is, in general, incorrect. We describe how the traditional expansion procedure for the mean electromotive force should be extended, and illustrate the consistency of this approach by means of a perturbation analysis for a mean magnetic field varying on long spatial scales. Finally we examine the magnitude of this new contribution to the magnetic diffusion for a particular flow.