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Theory of Turbulent Accretion Disks

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  25 September 2002

C. E.J.M.L.J. Terquem*
Affiliation:
Institut d'Astrophysique de Paris, France Université Denis Diderot-Paris VII, France
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Abstract

In low-mass disks, turbulent torques are probably the most important way of redistributing angular momentum. Here we present the theory of turbulent accretion disks. We show the molecular viscosity is far too small to account for the evolutionary timescale of disks, and we describe how turbulence may result in enhanced transport of (angular) momentum. We then turn to the magnetorotational instability, which thus far is the only mechanism that has been shown to initiate and sustain turbulence in disks. Finally, we present both the basis and the structure of α disk models.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
© EAS, EDP Sciences, 2002

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