Scalings, spectra, and statistics of strong wave turbulence

A two-component model of strongly nonlinear wave turbulence is developed for a broad class of systems in which high-frequency electrostatic waves interact with low-frequency sound-like waves. In this model coherent nonlinear wave packets form and collapse amid a sea of incoherent background waves. It is shown that three classes of turbulence exist, typified by Langmuir, lower-hybrid, and upper-hybrid turbulence. Balance between power input to incoherent waves, and dissipation at the end of collapse determines power-law scalings of turbulent electrostatic energy density, density fluctuations, length and time scales. Knowledge of the evolution of collapsing packets enables probability distributions of the magnitudes of electric fields and density fluctuations to be calculated, yielding power-law dependences. Wavenumber spectra of collapsing waves and associated density fluctuations are also calculated and shown to have power-law forms. Applications to Langmuir, lower-hybrid, and upper-hybrid waves are discussed. In the Langmuir case the results agree with earlier theory and simulations, with one exception, which is consistent only with earlier simulations. In the lower-hybrid and upper-hybrid cases, the results are consistent with the few simulations to date. copyright 1996 American Institute of Physics