Discontinuous Galerkin approximations in computational mechanics: hybridization, exact geometry and degree adaptivity

Discontinuous Galerkin (DG) discretizations with exact representation of the geometry and local polynomial degree adaptivity are revisited. Hybridization techniques are employed to reduce the computational cost of DG approximations and devise the hybridizable discontinuous Galerkin (HDG) method. Exact geometry described by non-uniform rational B-splines (NURBS) is integrated into HDG using the framework of the NURBS-enhanced finite element method (NEFEM). Moreover, optimal convergence and superconvergence properties of HDG-Voigt formulation in presence of symmetric second-order tensors are exploited to construct inexpensive error indicators and drive degree adaptive procedures. Applications involving the numerical simulation of problems in electrostatics, linear elasticity and incompressible viscous flows are presented. Moreover, this is done for both high-order HDG approximations and the lowest-order framework of face-centered finite volumes (FCFV).Peer ReviewedPostprint (author's final draft

eXtended hybridizable discontinuous Galerkin for incompressible flow problems with unfitted meshes and interfaces

The eXtended hybridizable discontinuous Galerkin (X-HDG) method is developed for the solution of Stokes problems with void or material interfaces. X-HDG is a novel method that combines the hybridizable discontinuous Galerkin (HDG) method with an eXtended finite element strategy, resulting in a high-order, unfitted, superconvergent method, with an explicit definition of the interface geometry by means of a level-set function. For elements not cut by the interface, the standard HDG formulation is applied, whereas a modified weak form for the local problem is proposed for cut elements. Heaviside enrichment is considered on cut faces and in cut elements in the case of bimaterial problems. Two-dimensional numerical examples demonstrate that the applicability, accuracy, and superconvergence properties of HDG are inherited in X-HDG, with the freedom of computational meshes that do not fit the interfacesPeer ReviewedPostprint (author's final draft

Stabilization in relation to wavenumber in HDG methods

Simulation of wave propagation through complex media relies on proper understanding of the properties of numerical methods when the wavenumber is real and complex. Numerical methods of the Hybrid Discontinuous Galerkin (HDG) type are considered for simulating waves that satisfy the Helmholtz and Maxwell equations. It is shown that these methods, when wrongly used, give rise to singular systems for complex wavenumbers. A sufficient condition on the HDG stabilization parameter for guaranteeing unique solvability of the numerical HDG system, both for Helmholtz and Maxwell systems, is obtained for complex wavenumbers. For real wavenumbers, results from a dispersion analysis are presented. An asymptotic expansion of the dispersion relation, as the number of mesh elements per wave increase, reveal that some choices of the stabilization parameter are better than others. To summarize the findings, there are values of the HDG stabilization parameter that will cause the HDG method to fail for complex wavenumbers. However, this failure is remedied if the real part of the stabilization parameter has the opposite sign of the imaginary part of the wavenumber. When the wavenumber is real, values of the stabilization parameter that asymptotically minimize the HDG wavenumber errors are found on the imaginary axis. Finally, a dispersion analysis of the mixed hybrid Raviart-Thomas method showed that its wavenumber errors are an order smaller than those of the HDG method