The computational physics program of the National MFE Computer Center

The principal objective of the Computational Physics Group is to develop advanced numerical models for the investigation of plasma phenomena and the simulation of present and future magnetic confinement devices. Another major objective of the group is to develop efficient algorithms and programming techniques for current and future generation of supercomputers. The computational physics group is involved in several areas of fusion research. One main area is the application of Fokker-Planck/quasilinear codes to tokamaks. Another major area is the investigation of resistive magnetohydrodynamics in three dimensions, with applications to compact toroids. Another major area is the investigation of kinetic instabilities using a 3-D particle code. This work is often coupled with the task of numerically generating equilibria which model experimental devices. Ways to apply statistical closure approximations to study tokamak-edge plasma turbulence are being examined. In addition to these computational physics studies, the group has developed a number of linear systems solvers for general classes of physics problems and has been making a major effort at ascertaining how to efficiently utilize multiprocessor computers