Simulation of cylindrical ion temperature gradient modes in the Columbia Linear Machine experiment | CU Experts

A comparison of the Columbia Linear Machine experiment [A. K. Sen, J. Chen, and M. Mauel, Phys. Rev. Lett. 66, 429 (1991)] with three-dimensional nonlinear electrostatic gyrokinetic simulation results is given, as well as comparisons with linear theory and simple theoretical predictions of nonlinear saturation. Linear theory is in reasonable agreement with the both experimental and simulation results. An analysis of the radial mode width which is localized by variation in the ion temperature gradient is given and compares well with both experiment and simulation. The theoretical estimate of the nonlinear saturation level is within a factor of 2 of what is observed in experiment and in simulation. In addition, both experiment and simulation show excitation of longer wavelength modes with poloidal mode numbers smaller than the linearly most unstable mode.

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