A simplified model to estimate nonlinear turbulent transport by linear dynamics in plasma turbulence.

A simplified model to estimate nonlinear turbulent transport only by linear calculations is proposed, where the turbulent heat diffusivity in tokamak ion temperature gradient(ITG) driven turbulence is reproduced for a wide parameter range including near- and far-marginal ITG stability. The optimal nonlinear functional relation(NFR) between the turbulent diffusivity, the turbulence intensity [Formula: see text], and the zonal-flow intensity [Formula: see text] is determined by means of mathematical optimization methods. Then, an extended modeling for [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] to incorporate the turbulence suppression effects and the temperature gradient dependence is carried out. The simplified transport model is expressed as a modified nonlinear function composed of the linear growth rate and the linear zonal-flow decay time. Good accuracy and wide applicability of the model are demonstrated, where the regression error of [Formula: see text] indicates improvement by a factor of about 1/4 in comparison to that in the previous works.