Physical Mechanism behind Zonal-Flow Generation in Drift-Wave Turbulence

The energetic interaction between drift-wave turbulence and zonal flows is studied experimentally in two-dimensional wave number space. The kinetic energy is found to be transferred nonlocally from the drift waves to the zonal flow. This confirms the theoretical prediction that the parametric-modulational instability is the driving mechanism of zonal flows. The physical mechanism of this nonlocal energetic interaction between and zonal flows and turbulent drift-wave eddies in relation to the suppression of turbulent transport is discussed.