Nonlinear hybrid simulations of energetic particle modes in realistic tokamak flux surface geometry

First results from nonlinear simulations of energetic particle modes and the resulting transport of energetic ions using realistic tokamak geometry are presented and compared with results obtained with a shifted-circle model equilibrium and otherwise equivalent parameters. The modes excited in both cases have similar frequencies and mode structures and cause a similar amount of energetic ion transport during the first few hundred Alfvén times of the nonlinear evolution. The similarity in transport is interesting since it stands in contrast to the reduced linear growth rate and saturation level in the non-circular case: for the parameters chosen, both are reduced by a factor of 2 compared to the circular case. These results motivate further studies, including a verification of our results with other codes, a clarification of the mechanisms underlying the linear stabilization, and a detailed analysis of the mode activity and particle redistribution during the nonlinear evolution. (author)