Tearing-mode influence on two-dimensional magnetohydrodynamic turbulence*

It has recently been proposed that magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) turbulence can be modified by the tearing mode in high Lundquist number flows. Simulations of strong MHD turbulence have demonstrated the creation of highly anisotropic, current-sheet-like structures at small scales within the inertial range. The recently proposed phenomenological picture contends that there exists some critical length scale at which the tearing mode within these structures can compete with the turbulent evolution of an eddy, and beyond which the turbulence within the end of the inertial range is modified, notably the energy spectra and alignment angle.

Our work numerically demonstrates that, in fact, the tearing mode can modify the turbulence within an anisotropic current sheet, changing the energy spectra. Using a highly-anisotropic two-dimensional simulation domain, one can access the high Lundquist numbers needed to produce this phenomenon.