Solar dynamo models with α-effect and turbulent pumping from local 3D convection calculations

Results from kinematic solar dynamo models employing α-effect and turbulent pumping from local convection calculations are presented. We estimate the magnitude of these effects to be around 2–3 m s, having scaled the local quantities with the convective velocity at the bottom of the convection zone from a solar mixing-length model. Rotation profile of the Sun as obtained from helioseismology is applied in the models; we also investigate the effects of the observed surface shear layer on the dynamo solutions. With these choices of the smalland large-scale velocity fields, we obtain estimate of the ratio of the the two induction effects, Cα/CΩ ≈ 10, which we keep fixed in all models. We also include a one-cell meridional circulation pattern having a magnitude of 10–20 m s near the surface and 1–2 m s at the bottom of the convection zone. The model essentially represents a distributed turbulent dynamo, as the α-effect is nonzero throughout the convection zone, although it concentrates near the bottom of the convection zone obtaining a maximum around 30 of latitude. Turbulent pumping of the mean fields is predominantly downand equatorward. The anisotropies in the turbulent diffusivity are neglected apart from the fact that the diffusivity is significantly reduced in the overshoot region. We find that, when all these effects are included in the model, it is possible to correctly reproduce many features of the solar activity cycle, namely the correct equatorward migration at low latitudes and the polar branch at high latitudes, and the observed negative sign of BrBφ. Although the activity clearly shifts towards the equator in comparison to previous models due to the combined action of the α-effect peaking at midlatitudes, meridional circulation and latitudinal pumping, most of the activity still occurs at too high latitudes (between 5 . . . 60). Other problems include the relatively narrow parameter space within which the preferred solution is dipolar (A0), and the somewhat too short cycle lengths of the solar-type solutions. The role of the surface shear layer is found to be important only in the case where the α-effect has an appreciable magnitude near the surface.