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Title: Solitary zonal structures in subcritical drift waves: a minimum model

Journal Article · · Plasma Physics and Controlled Fusion

Solitary zonal structures have recently been identified in gyrokinetic simulations of subcritical drift-wave (DW) turbulence with background shear flows. However, the nature of these structures has not been fully understood yet. Here, we show that similar structures can be obtained within a reduced model, which complements the modified Hasegawa–Mima equation with a generic primary instability and a background shear flow. We also find that these structures can be qualitatively reproduced in the modified Hasegawa–Wakatani equation, which subsumes the reduced model as a limit. In particular, we illustrate that in both cases, the solitary zonal structures approximately satisfy the same 'equation of state', which is a local relation connecting the DW envelope with the zonal-flow velocity. Due to this generality, our reduced model can be considered as a minimum model for solitary zonal structures in subcritical DWs.

Research Organization:
Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL), Princeton, NJ (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE
Grant/Contract Number:
AC02-09CH11466
OSTI ID:
1606350
Alternate ID(s):
OSTI ID: 23028737
Journal Information:
Plasma Physics and Controlled Fusion, Journal Name: Plasma Physics and Controlled Fusion Journal Issue: 4 Vol. 62; ISSN 0741-3335
Publisher:
IOP ScienceCopyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

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