The physical mechanisms behind the L-H transition have been experimentally studied in the TJ-II plasmas. The spatial, temporal and spectral structure of the interaction between turbulence and flows has been studied close to the L-H transition threshold conditions. The temporal dynamics of the turbulence-flow interaction displays a predator-prey relationship and both, radial outward and inward propagation velocities of the turbulence-flow front have been measured. Moreover, the turbulence scales involved in the energy transfer of the predator-prey process have been identified. © 2012 IOP Publishing Ltd.

We show that the modulational instability growth rate of zonal flows is determined directly from the quasilinear wave kinetic equation. We also demonstrate the relation between zonal-flow growth and the cross bispectrum of the high-frequency drift-wave-driven Reynolds stress and the low-frequency plasma potential by explicit calculation. Experimental measurements of the spatiotemporal evolution of the spectrum integrated bicoherence at the L-->H transition near the edge shear layer indicate a modification in the nonlinear phase coupling, which might be linked to the generation of sheared ExB flows.