Construction of higher-order curl-conforming finite elements and its assembly

Different choices are available when constructing vector finite element bases in real coordinates. In this communication, two different designs of higher-order curl-conforming basis functions are introduced and explained, showing the particularities of its assembly. Tetrahedra and hexahedra are used as element shapes to assess the effect of triangular and quadrilateral faces on the two considered constructions of basis functions. A comparison of their robustness in terms of the condition number of the finite element matrices for a number of distortions is includedMinisterio de Ciencia y Tecnología, Grant/Award Numbers: TEC2013- 47753-C3, TEC2016-80386-P; Ministerio de Educación, Cultura y Deporte, Grant/Award Number: FPU14/0374