Dynamo action in sliding plates of anisotropic electrical conductivity

Abstract: With materials of anisotropic electrical conductivity, it is possible to generate a dynamo with a simple velocity field, of the type precluded by Cowling's theorems with isotropic materials. Following a previous study by Ruderman and Ruzmaikin [1] who considered the dynamo effect induced by a uniform shear flow, we determine the conditions for the dynamo threshold when a solid plate is sliding over another one, both with anisotropic electrical conductivity. We obtain numerical solutions for a general class of anisotropy and obtain the conditions for the lowest magnetic Reynolds number, using a collocation Chebyshev method. In a particular geometry of anisotropy and wavenumber, we also derive an analytical solution, where the eigenvectors are just combinations of four exponential functions. An explicit analytical expression is obtained for the critical magnetic Reynold number. Above the critical magnetic Reynold number, we have also derived an analytical expression for the growth rate showing that this is a 'very fast' dynamo, extrapolating on the 'slow' and 'fast' terminology introduced by Vainshtein and Zeldovich [2].