Coupling between radial and torsional oscillations in a magnetized plasma and possible stellar applications

The weakly non-linear interaction of slow magnetoacoustic and torsional Alfven waves propagating along an unperturbed poloidal magnetic field in a stellar interior is studied in the high plasma beta limit. It is shown that slow magnetoacoustic waves parametrically drive torsional modes with the half frequency and wave number. Therefore global slow magnetoacoustic waves which have a radial velocity polarization, may amplify the torsional oscillations. Possible applications of this mechanism to the Sun and binary stars are briefly discussed.