Mechanism and scaling for convection of isolated structures in nonuniformly magnetized plasmas

Large-scale radial advection of isolated structures in nonuniformly magnetized plasmas is investigated. The underlying mechanism considered is due to the nonlinear evolution of interchange motions, without any presumption of plasma sheaths. Theoretical arguments supported by numerical simulations reveal an inertial scaling for the radial velocity of isolated structures in the ideal limit. This velocity increases as the square root of the structure size relative to the length scale of the magnetic field. The magnitude of the radial advection velocity, as well as the dynamical evolution of the structures, compares favorably with recent experimental measurements of radially propagating blob structures in the scrape-off layer of magnetically confined plasmas. (C) 2005 American Institute of Physics.