Finite element approximation of Maxwell’s equations with Debye memory

Copyright © 2010 Simon Shaw. All rights reserved.This article has been made available through the Brunel Open Access Publishing Fund.Maxwell’s equations in a bounded Debye medium are formulated in terms of the standard partial differential equations of electromagnetism with a Volterra-type history dependence of the polarization on the electric field intensity. This leads to Maxwell’s equations with memory. We make a correspondence between this type of constitutive law and the hereditary integral constitutive laws from linear viscoelasticity, and are then able to apply known results from viscoelasticity theory to this Maxwell system. In particular we can show long-time stability by shunning Gronwall’s lemma and estimating the history kernels more carefully by appeal to the underlying physical fading memory. We also give a fully discrete scheme for the electric field wave equation and derive stability bounds which are exactly analagous to those for the continuous problem, thus providing a foundation for long-time numerical integration. We finish by also providing error bounds for which the constant grows, at worst, linearly in time (excluding the time dependence in the norms of the exact solution). Although the first (mixed) finite element error analysis for the Debye problem was given by Jichun Li (in Comp. Meth. Appl. Mech. Eng., 196, (2007), pp. 3081–3094) this seems to be the the first time sharp constants have been given for this problem.This article is available through the Brunel Open Access Publishing Fund

Theoretical and numerical comparison of hyperelastic and hypoelastic formulations for Eulerian non-linear elastoplasticity

The aim of this paper is to compare a hyperelastic with a hypoelastic model describing the Eulerian dynamics of solids in the context of non-linear elastoplastic deformations. Specifically, we consider the well-known hypoelastic Wilkins model, which is compared against a hyperelastic model based on the work of Godunov and Romenski. First, we discuss some general conceptual differences between the two approaches. Second, a detailed study of both models is proposed, where differences are made evident at the aid of deriving a hypoelastic-type model corresponding to the hyperelastic model and a particular equation of state used in this paper. Third, using the same high order ADER Finite Volume and Discontinuous Galerkin methods on fixed and moving unstructured meshes for both models, a wide range of numerical benchmark test problems has been solved. The numerical solutions obtained for the two different models are directly compared with each other. For small elastic deformations, the two models produce very similar solutions that are close to each other. However, if large elastic or elastoplastic deformations occur, the solutions present larger differences.Comment: 14 figure

A Simple Multi-Directional Absorbing Layer Method to Simulate Elastic Wave Propagation in Unbounded Domains

The numerical analysis of elastic wave propagation in unbounded media may be difficult due to spurious waves reflected at the model artificial boundaries. This point is critical for the analysis of wave propagation in heterogeneous or layered solids. Various techniques such as Absorbing Boundary Conditions, infinite elements or Absorbing Boundary Layers (e.g. Perfectly Matched Layers) lead to an important reduction of such spurious reflections. In this paper, a simple absorbing layer method is proposed: it is based on a Rayleigh/Caughey damping formulation which is often already available in existing Finite Element softwares. The principle of the Caughey Absorbing Layer Method is first presented (including a rheological interpretation). The efficiency of the method is then shown through 1D Finite Element simulations considering homogeneous and heterogeneous damping in the absorbing layer. 2D models are considered afterwards to assess the efficiency of the absorbing layer method for various wave types and incidences. A comparison with the PML method is first performed for pure P-waves and the method is shown to be reliable in a more complex 2D case involving various wave types and incidences. It may thus be used for various types of problems involving elastic waves (e.g. machine vibrations, seismic waves, etc)

An axisymmetric time-domain spectral-element method for full-wave simulations: Application to ocean acoustics

The numerical simulation of acoustic waves in complex 3D media is a key topic in many branches of science, from exploration geophysics to non-destructive testing and medical imaging. With the drastic increase in computing capabilities this field has dramatically grown in the last twenty years. However many 3D computations, especially at high frequency and/or long range, are still far beyond current reach and force researchers to resort to approximations, for example by working in 2D (plane strain) or by using a paraxial approximation. This article presents and validates a numerical technique based on an axisymmetric formulation of a spectral finite-element method in the time domain for heterogeneous fluid-solid media. Taking advantage of axisymmetry enables the study of relevant 3D configurations at a very moderate computational cost. The axisymmetric spectral-element formulation is first introduced, and validation tests are then performed. A typical application of interest in ocean acoustics showing upslope propagation above a dipping viscoelastic ocean bottom is then presented. The method correctly models backscattered waves and explains the transmission losses discrepancies pointed out in Jensen et al. (2007). Finally, a realistic application to a double seamount problem is considered.Comment: Added a reference, and fixed a typo (cylindrical versus spherical

Some gradient theories in linear visco-elastodynamics towards dispersion and attenuation of waves in relation to large-strain models

Various spatial-gradient extensions of standard viscoelastic rheologies of the Kelvin-Voigt, Maxwell's, and Jeffreys' types are analyzed in linear one-dimensional situations as far as the propagation of waves and their dispersion and attenuation. These gradient extensions are then presented in the large-strain variants where they are sometimes used rather for purely analytical reasons either in the Lagrangian or the Eulerian formulations without realizing this wave-propagation context

SOLID-SHELL FINITE ELEMENT MODELS FOR EXPLICIT SIMULATIONS OF CRACK PROPAGATION IN THIN STRUCTURES

Crack propagation in thin shell structures due to cutting is conveniently simulated using explicit finite element approaches, in view of the high nonlinearity of the problem. Solidshell elements are usually preferred for the discretization in the presence of complex material behavior and degradation phenomena such as delamination, since they allow for a correct representation of the thickness geometry. However, in solid-shell elements the small thickness leads to a very high maximum eigenfrequency, which imply very small stable time-steps. A new selective mass scaling technique is proposed to increase the time-step size without affecting accuracy. New ”directional” cohesive interface elements are used in conjunction with selective mass scaling to account for the interaction with a sharp blade in cutting processes of thin ductile shells