TAPIR Seminar

Beyond Parker: The Origin of Cosmic Magnetic Fields

Bindesh Tripathi, Postdoctoral Research Scientist, Department of Physics, Columbia University,

ONLINE ONLY -- To Join via Zoom: 851 0756 7442

Abstract: Magnetic fields are ubiquitous in nature, yet their origin remains a fundamental puzzle. Eugene Parker's 1955 paradigm—the ⍺-dynamo—attributed these fields to helical fluid motions. However, this framework faced a significant challenge in the 1990s: Alfvénization, the alignment of turbulent flows and magnetic fields, was found to suppress helical dynamos.
In this talk, I demonstrate that Alfvénization actually drives large-scale magnetic field generation in the presence of a non-uniform shear flow. This robust mechanism requires no rotation or helical driving and applies universally, from laboratory plasmas and stellar interiors to black hole accretion flows and neutron star mergers. (Reference: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-025-09912-0 )

Event Sponsors:

Theoretical AstroPhysics Including Relativity and Cosmology (TAPIR) - More events from this Sponsor

For more information, please contact JoAnn Boyd by email at [email protected].

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