Topological evolution of magnetic field in ideal magnetohydrodynamics

  • Unique Paper ID: 207198
  • Volume: 13
  • Issue: 2
  • PageNo: 4418-4422
  • Abstract:
  • Under the frozen-in condition of ideal magnetohydrodynamics (MHD), magnetic field lines are tied to the plasma fluid elements and move together with them. When unbalanced forces compress two distinct, magnetized plasma domains toward each other, their respective field lines are brought into close contact. Because the ideal frozen-in constraint prevents the fluid elements and their embedded field lines from intermixing, a sharp magnetic discontinuity forms along their boundary of interaction. According to Ampere's law, this steep gradient in the magnetic field vector generates an intense electric current density confined to a narrow, two-dimensional plane, forming what is known as a current sheet. When finite electrical resistivity or non-ideal plasma effects are present, the ideal frozen-in condition breaks down within these thin current sheets. The current sheet decays through Ohmic dissipation and magnetic diffusion, allowing opposing field lines to break, rejoin and relax into a simpler geometric configuration. This fundamental process, called magnetic reconnection, converts stored magnetic energy into kinetic energy, thermal energy, and particle acceleration. The formation and dissipative decay of current sheets provide a key physical mechanism for explaining diverse plasma phenomena across the universe, including the million-degree temperature of the solar corona, the triggering of solar flares and coronal mass ejections. In this work, simulations are carried out by solving the MHD equations numerically with suitable initial conditions of magnetic and velocity fields in Cartesian coordinates. The simulation results show the expansion of magnetic field lines and triggering of magnetic reconnection, leading to changes in magnetic field topologies.

Copyright & License

Copyright © 2026 Authors retain the copyright of this article. This article is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

BibTeX

@article{207198,
        author = {Dinesh Kumar},
        title = {Topological evolution of magnetic field in ideal magnetohydrodynamics},
        journal = {International Journal of Innovative Research in Technology},
        year = {2026},
        volume = {13},
        number = {2},
        pages = {4418-4422},
        issn = {2349-6002},
        url = {https://ijirt.org/article?manuscript=207198},
        abstract = {Under the frozen-in condition of ideal magnetohydrodynamics (MHD), magnetic field lines are tied to the plasma fluid elements and move together with them. When unbalanced forces compress two distinct, magnetized plasma domains toward each other, their respective field lines are brought into close contact. Because the ideal frozen-in constraint prevents the fluid elements and their embedded field lines from intermixing, a sharp magnetic discontinuity forms along their boundary of interaction. According to Ampere's law, this steep gradient in the magnetic field vector generates an intense electric current density confined to a narrow, two-dimensional plane, forming what is known as a current sheet. When finite electrical resistivity or non-ideal plasma effects are present, the ideal frozen-in condition breaks down within these thin current sheets. The current sheet decays through Ohmic dissipation and magnetic diffusion, allowing opposing field lines to break, rejoin and relax into a simpler geometric configuration. This fundamental process, called magnetic reconnection, converts stored magnetic energy into kinetic energy, thermal energy, and particle acceleration. The formation and dissipative decay of current sheets provide a key physical mechanism for explaining diverse plasma phenomena across the universe, including the million-degree temperature of the solar corona, the triggering of solar flares and coronal mass ejections.  In this work, simulations are carried out by solving the MHD equations numerically with suitable initial conditions of magnetic and velocity fields in Cartesian coordinates.  The simulation results show the expansion of magnetic field lines and triggering of magnetic reconnection, leading to changes in magnetic field topologies.},
        keywords = {Current sheet, Magnetic topology, Magnetic discontinuity, Magnetic reconnection, Solar corona},
        month = {July},
        }

Cite This Article

Kumar, D. (2026). Topological evolution of magnetic field in ideal magnetohydrodynamics. International Journal of Innovative Research in Technology (IJIRT), 13(2), 4418–4422.

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