Approaching the exascale simulation of subsonic turbulence with smoothed particle hydrodynamics

Abstract

The candidate will work in collaboration with the SPH-EXA and SKAO-Switzerland projects.Turbulence is key to many astrophysical and cosmological scenarios. Hence, a correct depiction of it in numerical simulations is of capital importance. Kolmogorov's theory states that in the subsonic regime the energy associated with the scale of the turbulent structures follows the power law � ∝ � −5∕3 , where � is the wave-number. Smoothed Particle Hydrodynamics simulations have traditionally shown difficulties building up a Kolmogorov-like turbulent cascade. The main reason for this can be traced back to the errors in gradient evaluation when standard SPH methods are used, jointly with over-viscous behavior from traditional artificial viscosity formulations. These problems can be tackled nowa- days with modern implementations of the gradient evaluation that are much more accurate, and also using adaptive switches and artificial viscosity cleaners that reduce dissipation where and when needed. With the goal of testing this new implementation, as well as the performance of the new state- of-the-art SPH-EXA code, a set of turbulence simulations have been carried out, that represent the most accurate and highest resolution SPH-based turbulence simulations to date. The combination of the high scalability of SPH-EXA with the use of upgraded hydrodynamics has shown a sizeable improvement in the results of the subsonic turbulence simulation

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