Solution

ID: past-exam-of-the-mathematics-course-of-the-university-of-cambridge/2018/iii/paper-314/4/b/solution

Let be the central stellar mass and take positive Keplerian rotation, . The initial poloidal magnetic field stays fixed by part (a), while . Integrating the toroidal induction equation with gives
The initial field is a solenoidal vector field on the disk region , since . Assuming , the amplitude ratio is
It reaches one at
Thus the equality time is the same fraction of the orbital period at every radius. If “orbital time” instead means , the corresponding fraction is . These are kinematic solutions with prescribed rotation and the neglected magnetic back-reaction.

New to topics? Read the docs here!