title: Nonlinear dynamo action in a precessing cylindrical container.
abstract: It is numerically demonstrated by means of a magnetohydrodynamics code that precession can trigger the dynamo effect in a cylindrical container. When the Reynolds number, based on the radius of the cylinder and its angular velocity, increases, the flow, which is initially centrosymmetric, loses its stability and bifurcates to a quasiperiodic motion. This unsteady and asymmetric flow is shown to be capable of sustaining dynamo action in the linear and nonlinear regimes. The magnetic field thus generated is unsteady and quadrupolar. These numerical evidences of dynamo action in a precessing cylindrical container may be useful for an experiment now planned at the Dresden sodium facility for dynamo and thermohydraulic studies in Germany.
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire d'Informatique pour la Mécanique et les Sciences de l'Ingénieur, CNRS UPR 3251, Orsay, France. nore@limsi.fr
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Nore
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Léorat
authors.forename: J-L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Guermond
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Luddens