Wave-kinetic approach to zonal-flow dynamics: recent advances

Zhu, Hongxuan ; Dodin, I. Y.
Issue date: 2021
Rights:
Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY)
Cite as:
Zhu, Hongxuan & Dodin, I. Y. (2021). Wave-kinetic approach to zonal-flow dynamics: recent advances [Data set]. Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory, Princeton University. https://doi.org/10.11578/1814951
@electronic{zhu_hongxuan_2021,
  author      = {Zhu, Hongxuan and
                Dodin, I. Y.},
  title       = {{Wave-kinetic approach to zonal-flow dyna
                mics: recent advances}},
  publisher   = {{Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory, Pri
                nceton University}},
  year        = 2021,
  url         = {https://doi.org/10.11578/1814951}
}
Description:

Basic physics of drift-wave turbulence and zonal flows has long been studied within the framework of wave-kinetic theory. Recently, this framework has been re-examined from first principles, which has led to more accurate yet still tractable "improved" wave-kinetic equations. In particular, these equations reveal an important effect of the zonal-flow "curvature" (the second radial derivative of the flow velocity) on dynamics and stability of drift waves and zonal flows. We overview these recent findings and present a consolidated high-level picture of (mostly quasilinear) zonal-flow physics within reduced models of drift-wave turbulence.

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