Energy Cascades in Physical Scales of 3D Incompressible Magnetohydrodynamic Turbulence

TL;DR

This paper rigorously proves the existence of energy cascades and scale-locality in 3D incompressible MHD turbulence directly from fundamental equations, providing insights into energy transfer mechanisms in turbulent plasmas.

Contribution

It establishes the existence of energy cascades and scale-locality in 3D MHD turbulence directly from the equations, with new insights into energy transfer scenarios.

Findings

Confirmed total energy cascade in 3D MHD turbulence

Identified conditions for scale-local energy flux

Described scenarios of energy transfer between fluid and magnetic field

Abstract

The existence of a total energy cascade and the scale-locality of the total energy flux are rigorously established working directly from the 3D MHD equations and under assumptions consistent with physical properties of turbulent plasmas. Secondary results are included identifying scenarios where inertial effects on specific energies effect cascade-like behavior as well as a scenario in which the inter-field energy transfer is predominantly from the fluid to the magnetic field.