Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
---|---|---|---|---|
1864682 | Physics Letters A | 2006 | 7 Pages |
Abstract
Small-scale turbulence in toroidal magnetoplasmas driven by electron or ion temperature gradient modes is known for its tendency to form strongly anisotropic structures, namely radially elongated vortices called streamers or (mostly) poloidal E×BE×B shear flows called zonal flows. The interaction of such patterns is studied here in the framework of a simple dynamical system, focusing in particular on the initial saturation phase of a streamer. It is shown that the saturation amplitude, in this reduced description, is determined by a balance between the streamer's linear growth rate and the zonal mode's nonlinear growth rate.
Related Topics
Physical Sciences and Engineering
Physics and Astronomy
Physics and Astronomy (General)
Authors
F. Jenko,