A general symbolic PDE solver generator: Explicit schemes

Article type: Research Article

Authors: Sheshadri, K. | Fritzson, Peter

Affiliations: Department of Computer and Information Science, Linköping University, S-581 83 Linköping, Sweden. Tel.: +46 13 281484; Fax: +46 13 284499; E-mail: {shesh, petfr}@ida.liu.se

Abstract: A symbolic solver generator to deal with a system of partial differential equations (PDEs) in functions of an arbitrary number of variables is presented; it can also handle arbitrary domains (geometries) of the independent variables. Given a system of PDEs, the solver generates a set of explicit finite-difference methods to any specified order, and a Fourier stability criterion for each method. For a method that is stable, an iteration function is generated symbolically using the PDE and its initial and boundary conditions. This iteration function is dynamically generated for every PDE problem, and its evaluation provides a solution to the PDE problem. A C++/Fortran 90 code for the iteration function is generated using the MathCode system, which results in a performance gain of the order of a thousand over Mathematica, the language that has been used to code the solver generator. Examples of stability criteria are presented that agree with known criteria; examples that demonstrate the generality of the solver and the speed enhancement of the generated C++ and Fortran 90 codes are also presented.

Journal: Scientific Programming, vol. 11, no. 1, pp. 39-55, 2003