The book presents an advanced but accessible overview of some of the most important sub-branches of magnetohydrodynamics (MHD): stability theory, magnetic topology, relaxation theory and magnetic reconnection. Although each of these subjects is often treated separately, in practical MHD applications they are normally inseparable. MHD is a highly active field of research.The book is written for advanced undergraduates, postgraduates and researchers working on MHD-related research in plasma physics and fluid dynamics.

To understand plasma physics intuitively one need to master the MHD behaviors. As sciences advance, gap between published textbooks and cutting-edge researches gradually develops. Connection from textbook knowledge to up-to-dated research results can often be tough. Review articles can help. This book contains eight topical review papers on MHD. For magnetically confined fusion one can find toroidal MHD theory for tokamaks, magnetic relaxation process in spheromaks, and the formation and stability of field-reversed configuration. In space plasma physics one can get solar spicules and X-ray jets physics, as well as general sub-fluid theory. For numerical methods one can find the implicit numerical methods for resistive MHD and the boundary control formalism. For low temperature plasma physics one can read theory for Newtonian and non-Newtonian fluids etc.

This book revises the evolution of ideas in various branches of magnetohydrodynamics (astrophysics, earth and solar dynamos, pinch, MHD turbulence and liquid metals) and reviews current trends and challenges. Uniquely, it contains the review articles on the development of the subject by pioneers in the field as well as leading experts, not just in one, but in various branches of magnetohydrodynamics, such as liquid metals, astrophysics, dynamo and pinch.

The book presents an advanced but accessible overview of some of the most important sub-branches of magnetohydrodynamics (MHD): stability theory, magnetic topology, relaxation theory and magnetic reconnection. Although each of these subjects is often treated separately, in practical MHD applications they are normally inseparable. MHD is a highly active field of research. The book is written for advanced undergraduates, postgraduates and researchers working on MHD-related research in plasma physics and fluid dynamics.

This book is an introductory text on magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) - the study of the interaction of magnetic fields and conducting fluids.

Magnetohydrodynamics, or MHD, is a theoretical way of describing the statics and dynamics of electrically conducting uids. The most important of these uids occurring in both nature and the laboratory are ionized gases, called plasmas. These have the simultaneous properties of conducting electricity and being electrically charge neutral on almost all length scales. The study of these gases is called plasma physics. MHD is the poor cousin of plasma physics. It is the simplest theory of plasma dynamics. In most introductory courses, it is usually afforded a short chapter or lecture at most: Alfven ́ waves, the kink mode, and that is it. (Now, on to Landau damping!) In advanced plasma courses, such as those dealing with waves or kinetic theory, it is given an even more cursory treatment, a brief mention on the way to things more profound and interesting. (It is just MHD! Besides, real plasma phy- cists do kinetic theory!) Nonetheless, MHD is an indispensable tool in all applications of plasma physics.

Suitable for advanced undergraduates and graduate students in engineering, this text introduces the concepts of plasma physics and magnetohydrodynamics from a physical viewpoint. The first section of the three-part treatment deals mainly with the properties of ionized gases in magnetic and electric fields, essentially following the microscopic viewpoint. An introduction surveys the concepts of ionized gases and plasmas, together with a variety of magnetohydrodynamic regimes. A review of electromagnetic field theory follows, including motion of an individual charged particle and derivations of drift motions and adiabatic invariants. Additional topics include kinetic theory, derivation of electrical conductivity, development of statistical mechanics, radiation from plasma, and plasma wave motion. Part II addresses the macroscopic motion of electrically conducting compressible fluids: magnetohydrodynamic approximations; description of macroscopic fluid motions; magnetohydrodynamic channel flow; methods of estimating channel-flow behavior; and treatment of magnetohydrodynamic boundary layers. Part III draws upon the material developed in previous sections to explore applications of magnetohydrodynamics. The text concludes with a series of problems that reinforce the teachings of all three parts.