Ion temperature in plasmas with intrinsic Alfven waves.

This Brief Communication clarifies the physics of non-resonant heating of protons by lowfrequency Alfvenic turbulence. On the basis of general definition for wave energy density in plasmas' it is shown that the wave magnetic field energy is equivalent to the kinetic energy density of the ions' whose motion is induced by the wave magnetic field' thus providing a self-consistent description of the non-resonant heating by Alfvenic turbulence. Although the study is motivated by the research on the solar corona' the present discussion is only concerned with the plasma physics of the heating process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]