Characteristics Of A Magnetic Buoyancy Driven Solar Dynamo Model

Abstract

We have developed a hybrid model of the solar dynamo on the lines of the Babcock-Leighton idea that the poloidal field is generated at the surface of the Sun from the decay of active regions. In this model magnetic buoyancy is handled with a realistic recipe - wherein toroidal flux is made to erupt from the overshoot layer wherever it exceeds a specified critical field ($10^5$ G). The erupted toroidal field is then acted upon by the alpha effect near the surface to give rise to the poloidal field. In the first half of this paper we present a parameter space study of this model, to bring out similarities and differences between it and other well studied models of the past. In the second half of this paper we show that the mechanism of buoyant eruptions and the subsequent depletion of the toroidal field inside the overshoot layer, is capable of constraining the magnitude of the dynamo generated magnetic field there, although a global quenching mechanism is still required to ensure that the magnetic fields do not blow up. We also believe that a critical study of this mechanism may give us new information regarding the solar interior and end with an example, where we propose a new method for estimating an upper limit of the diffusivity within the overshoot layer.