Performance of preconditioned iterative and multigrid solvers in solving the three-dimensional magnetotelluric modeling problem using the staggered finite-difference method: a comparative study

An effective solver for the large complex system of linear equations is critical for improving the accuracy of numerical solutions in three-dimensional (3D) magnetotelluric (MT) modeling using the staggered finite-difference (SFD) method. In electromagnetic modeling, the formed system of linear equations is commonly solved using preconditioned iterative relaxation methods. We present 3D MT modeling using the SFD method, based on former work. The multigrid solver and three solvers preconditioned by incomplete Cholesky decomposition—the minimum residual method, the generalized product bi-conjugate gradient method and the bi-conjugate gradient stabilized method—are used to solve the formed system of linear equations. Divergence correction for the magnetic field is applied. We also present a comparison of the stability and convergence of these iterative solvers if divergence correction is used. Model tests show that divergence correction improves the convergence of iterative solvers and the accuracy of numerical results. Divergence correction can also decrease the number of iterations for fast convergence without changing the stability of linear solvers. For consideration of the computation time and memory requirements, the multigrid solver combined with divergence correction is preferred for 3D MT field simulation