The structure of magneto-hydrodynamic shock waves

Abstract

The equations describing the detailed structure of magneto-hydrodynamic shocks are derived and their solutions discussed in the special cases of high or low electrical conductivity. For high conductivity the shock front has a width of several mean free paths. For low conductivity, if the initial magnetic field is smaller than a certain critical value, a sharp shock is preceded by a wide region in which the field, velocity and temperature change slowly; if the field is larger than this critical value, then no sharp shock occurs and all the variables change slowly over a wide region. A small double layer of charge is built up on the shock front as a result of the Hall effect.