A new hybrid kinetic electron model for full-f gyrokinetic simulations

A new hybrid kinetic electron model is developed for electrostatic full-f gyrokinetic simulations of the ion temperature gradient driven trapped electron mode (ITG-TEM) turbulence at the ion scale. In the model, a full kinetic electron model is applied to the full-f gyrokinetic equation, the multi-species linear Fokker-Planck collision operator, and an axisymmetric part of the gyrokinetic Poisson equation, while in a non-axisymmetric part of the gyrokinetic Poisson equation, turbulent fluctuations are determined only by kinetic trapped electrons responses. By using this approach, the so-called.Hmode is avoided with keeping important physics such as the ITG-TEM, the neoclassical transport, the ambipolar condition, and particle trapping and detrapping processes. The model enables full-f gyrokinetic simulations of ITG-TEM turbulence with a reasonable computational cost. Comparisons between flux driven ITG turbulence simulations with kinetic and adiabatic electrons are presented. Although the similar ion temperature gradients with nonlinear upshift from linear critical gradients are sustained in quasi-steady states, parallel flows and radial electric fields are qualitatively different with kinetic electrons. (C) 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.