Preprint typeset using LATEX style emulateapj v. 04/17/13 AN ADAPTIVE PARTICLE-MESH GRAVITY SOLVER FOR ENZO

We describe and implement an adaptive particle-mesh algorithm to solve the Poisson equation for grid-based hydrodynamics codes with nested grids. The algorithm is implemented and extensively tested within the astrophysical code Enzo against the multigrid solver available by default. We find that while both algorithms show similar accuracy for smooth mass distributions, the adaptive particle-mesh algorithm is more accurate for the case of point masses, and is generally less noisy. We also demonstrate that the two-body problem can be solved accurately in a configuration with nested grids. In addition, we discuss the effect of subcycling, and demonstrate that evolving all the levels with the same timestep yields even greater precision. Subject headings: gravitation – methods: numerical 1