Gyrokinetic investigation of the nonlinear interaction of Alfvén instabilities and energetic particle-driven geodesic acoustic modes

This paper presents a study of the interaction between Alfvén modes and zonal structures, considering a realistic ASDEX Upgrade equilibrium. The results of gyrokinetic simulations with the global, electromagnetic, particle-in-cell code ORB5 are presented, where the modes are driven unstable by energetic particles with a bump-on-tail equilibrium distribution function, with radial density gradient. Two regimes have been observed. At low energetic particle concentration, the zonal structure (identified as an energetic particle-driven geodesic acoustic mode) is more unstable than the Alfvén mode. In the regime at high energetic particle concentration, the Alfvén mode is more unstable than the zonal structure. The interplay between the modes leads to a modification of their growth rates as well as to a modification of their saturation levels. The theoretical explanation of the mode interaction is given in terms of three-wave coupling of the energetic particle-driven geodesic acoustic mode and Alfvén mode, mediated by the curvature-pressure coupling term of the energetic particles.