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At least 1,153 records · Page 64

Automated Algorithms for Quantum-Level Accuracy in Atomistic Simulations: LDRD Final Report.

This report summarizes the result of LDRD project 12-0395, titled "Automated Algorithms for Quantum-level Accuracy in Atomistic Simulations." During the course of this LDRD, we have developed an interatomic potential for solids and liquids called Spectral Neighbor Analysis Poten- tial (SNAP). The SNAP potential has a very general form and uses machine-learning techniques to reproduce the energies, forces, and stress tensors of a large set of small configurations of atoms, which are obtained using high-accuracy quantum electronic structure (QM) calculations. The local environment of each atom is characterized by a set of bispectrum components of the local neighbor density projected on to a basis of hyperspherical harmonics in four dimensions. The SNAP coef- ficients are determined using weighted least-squares linear regression against the full QM training set. This allows the SNAP potential to be fit in a robust, automated manner to large QM data sets using many bispectrum components. The calculation of the bispectrum components and the SNAP potential are implemented in the LAMMPS parallel molecular dynamics code. Global optimization methods in the DAKOTA software package are used to seek out good choices of hyperparameters that define the overall structure of the SNAP potential. FitSnap.py, a Python-based software pack- age interfacing to both LAMMPS and DAKOTA is used to formulate the linear regression problem, solve it, and analyze the accuracy of the resultant SNAP potential. We describe a SNAP potential for tantalum that accurately reproduces a variety of solid and liquid properties. Most significantly, in contrast to existing tantalum potentials, SNAP correctly predicts the Peierls barrier for screw dislocation motion. We also present results from SNAP potentials generated for indium phosphide (InP) and silica (SiO 2 ). We describe efficient algorithms for calculating SNAP forces and energies in molecular dynamics simulations using massively parallel computers and advanced processor ar- chitectures. Finally, we briefly describe the MSM method for efficient calculation of electrostatic interactions on massively parallel computers.

Thompson, Aidan Patrick↗

Jaqal the Quantum Assembly Language for QSCOUT

QSCOUT is the Quantum Scientific Computing Open User Testbed, a trapped-ion quantum computer testbed realized at Sandia National Laboratories on behalf of the Department of Energy's Office of Science and its Advanced Scientific Computing Research (ASCR) program.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗

Developing Capabilities in Physical and Computational Sciences

The Physical and Computational Sciences Directorate (PCSD) performs fundamental research in support of the science missions of Offices of Basic Energy Sciences (BES), Advanced Scientific Computing Research (ASCR), High Energy Physics (HEP), Nuclear Physics (NP), and Fusion Energy Sciences (FES), and others within the domains of the chemical, materials, computational sciences, mathematics, and physics. This LDRD project aims to provide funding to develop/demonstrate research capabilities for proposals and publications to support these science missions. Staff will propose small research tasks/projects to be performed under this overall project.

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CH↗

Impact of computers on aerodynamics research and development

Factors motivating the development of computational aerodynamics as a discipline are traced back to the limitations of the tools available to the aerodynamicist before the development of digital computers. Governing equations in exact and approximate forms are discussed together with approaches to their numerical solution. Example results obtained from the successively refined forms of the equations are presented and discussed, both in the context of levels of computer power required and the degree of the effect that their solution has on aerodynamic research and development. Factors pacing advances in computational aerodynamics are identified, including the amount of computational power required to take the next major step in the discipline. Finally, the Numerical Aerodynamic Simulation (NAS) Program - with its 1987 target of achieving a sustained computational rate of 1 billion floating-point operations per second operating on a memory of 240 million words - is briefly discussed in terms of its projected effect on the future of computational aerodynamics.

Peterson, V. L.↗

Faster Finances

TRW has applied the Apollo checkout procedures to retail-store and bank-transaction systems, as well as to control systems for electric power transmission grids -- reducing the chance of power blackouts. Automatic checkout equipment for Apollo Spacecraft is one of the most complex computer systems in the world. Used to integrate extensive Apollo checkout procedures from manufacture to launch, it has spawned major advances in computer systems technology. Store and bank credit system has caused significant improvement in speed and accuracy of transactions, credit authorization, and inventory control. A similar computer service called "Validata" is used nationwide by airlines, airline ticket offices, car rental agencies, and hotels.

Source record↗

Models, In situ, and Remote Sensing of Aerosols (MIRA)

There is a natural partitioning of scientific interest amongst three specialties of aerosol re-search: modeling, in situ measurements, and remote sensing. The broader aerosol community benefits when these groups interact, and this strengthens overall scientific impact on climate and air quality research and predictions. The new MIRA working group establishes a forum for identifying collaborations and improving discussions amongst specialties and across regional boundaries. One area of keen interest is uniting satellite and ground-based lidar groups with other aerosol disciplines. Elastic backscatter lidars depend upon a priori knowledge of aerosol properties to convert measured lidar profiles into aerosol extinction profiles. Acquiring additional insight on aerosol properties and transport is highly valuable to these lidar groups to improve the data quality and aid in their scientific interpretation. Another area of interest is to facilitate the incorporation of measurements into global aerosol models. Modelers need aerosol optical look-up tables that enable quick conversions of hydrated (and dry) polydisperse size distributions into aerosol optical properties (extinction, scattering, etc.), but many of the existing tables are based upon outdated measurements. Thus, MIRA is building the Tables of Aerosol Optics (TAO), which is a community collection of aerosol optical calculations. This expands on the historical efforts of Shettle and Fenn, d’Almeida, GADS, OPAC, etc., except that TAO seeks continual input from the community. Thus, as aerosol measurement and computational techniques advance, so does the TAO collective. Since TAO is a community collective, it is expected that users will optionally upload computations for aerosol type as well as computations for all of the traditional aerosol species(like amm sulfate, amm nitrate, organics, etc.). The near-term purpose of the MIRA working group is to: *Characterize regional aerosol lidar ratios to support improvements of aerosol extinction profiles and understanding of aerosol typing. *Create TAO --a community cooperative of aerosol optical tables. *Facilitate international communications between aerosol measurement and modeling groups. *Encourage the use of regional knowledge to develop and improve remote sensing techniques for current and future backscatter lidars located in space. *Enable and foster communication between the scientists who run global aerosol models and scientists who analyze space-based lidar data. We will discuss how a collaborative aerosol working group will be organized on this topic. Those who are interested in MIRA can sign up for the MIRA email listserver at https://forms.gle/qdbCnngzNJc5YJi57.

Greg Schuster↗

Models, In situ, and Remote sensing of Aerosols (MIRA): Formation of an International Working Group

There is a natural partitioning of scientific interest amongst three specialties of aerosol re- search: modeling, in situ measurements, and remote sensing. The broader aerosol community benefits when these groups interact, and this strengthens overall scientific impact on climate and air quality research and predictions. The new MIRA working group establishes a forum for identifying collaborations and improving discussions amongst specialties and across regional boundaries. One area of keen interest is uniting satellite and ground-based lidar groups with other aerosol disciplines. Elastic backscatter lidars depend upon a priori knowledge of aerosol properties to convert measured lidar profiles into aerosol extinction profiles. Acquiring additional insight on aerosol properties and transport is highly valuable to these lidar groups to improve the data quality and aid in their scientific interpretation. Another area of interest is to facilitate the incorporation of measurements into global aerosol models. Modelers need aerosol optical look-up tables that enable quick conversions of hydrated (and dry) polydisperse size distributions into aerosol optical properties (extinction, scattering, etc.), but many of the existing tables are based upon outdated measurements. Thus, MIRA is building the Tables of Aerosol Optics (TAO), which is a community collection of aerosol optical calculations. This expands on the historical efforts of Shettle and Fenn, d’Almeida, GADS, OPAC, etc., except that TAO seeks continual input from the community. Thus, as aerosol measurement and computational techniques advance, so does the TAO collective. Since TAO is a community collective, it is expected that users will optionally upload computations for aerosol type as well as computations for all of the traditional aerosol species (like amm sulfate, amm nitrate, organics, etc.). The near-term purpose of the MIRA working group is to: * Characterize regional aerosol lidar ratios to support improvements of aerosol extinction profiles and understanding of aerosol typing. * Create TAO -- a community cooperative of aerosol optical tables. * Facilitate international communications between aerosol measurement and modeling groups. * Encourage the use of regional knowledge to develop and improve remote sensing techniques for current and future backscatter lidars located in space. * Enable and foster communication between the scientists who run global aerosol models and scientists who analyze space-based lidar data. We will discuss how a collaborative aerosol working group will be organized on this topic. Send email to calipso_v5alr-join@lists.nasa.gov with the word `subscribe' in the subject line to join MIRA.

Gregory Schuster↗

Fluid-Structure Interaction Modeling of High-Aspect Ratio Nuclear Fuel Plates Using COMSOL

The High Flux Isotope Reactor at the Oak Ridge National Lab is in the research stage of converting its fuel from high-enriched uranium to low-enriched uranium. Due to different physical properties of the new fuel and changes to the internal fuel plate design, the current safety basis must be re-evaluated through rigorous computational analyses. One of the areas being explored is the fluid-structure interaction phenomenon due to the interaction of thin fuel plates (50 mils thickness) and the cooling fluid (water). Detailed computational fluid dynamics and fluid-structure interaction simulations have only recently become feasible due to improved numerical algorithms and advancements in computing technology. For many reasons including the already built-in fluid-structure interaction module, COMSOL has been chosen for this complex problem. COMSOL's ability to solve multiphysics problems using a fully-coupled and implicit solution algorithm is crucial in obtaining a stable and accurate solution. Our initial findings show that COMSOL can accurately model such problems due to its ability to closely couple the fluid dynamics and the structural dynamics problems.

Fluid-Structure Interaction↗

Recovery Act: Advanced Direct Methanol Fuel Cell for Mobile Computing

The objective of the project was to advance portable fuel cell system technology towards the commercial targets of power density, energy density and lifetime. These targets were laid out in the DOE’s R&D roadmap to develop an advanced direct methanol fuel cell power supply that meets commercial entry requirements. Such a power supply will enable mobile computers to operate non-stop, unplugged from the wall power outlet, by using the high energy density of methanol fuel contained in a replaceable fuel cartridge. Specifically this project focused on balance-of-plant component integration and miniaturization, as well as extensive component, subassembly and integrated system durability and validation testing. This design has resulted in a pre-production power supply design and a prototype that meet the rigorous demands of consumer electronic applications.

08 HYDROGEN↗

Large Scale Computing and Storage Requirements for Nuclear Physics Research

The National Energy Research Scientific Computing Center (NERSC) is the primary computing center for the DOE Office of Science, serving approximately 4,000 users and hosting some 550 projects that involve nearly 700 codes for a wide variety of scientific disciplines. In addition to large-scale computing resources NERSC provides critical staff support and expertise to help scientists make the most efficient use of these resources to advance the scientific mission of the Office of Science. In May 2011, NERSC, DOE’s Office of Advanced Scientific Computing Research (ASCR) and DOE’s Office of Nuclear Physics (NP) held a workshop to characterize HPC requirements for NP research over the next three to five years. The effort is part of NERSC’s continuing involvement in anticipating future user needs and deploying necessary resources to meet these demands. The workshop revealed several key requirements, in addition to achieving its goal of characterizing NP computing. The key requirements include: 1. Larger allocations of computational resources at NERSC; 2. Visualization and analytics support; and 3. Support at NERSC for the unique needs of experimental nuclear physicists. This report expands upon these key points and adds others. The results are based upon representative samples, called “case studies,” of the needs of science teams within NP. The case studies were prepared by NP workshop participants and contain a summary of science goals, methods of solution, current and future computing requirements, and special software and support needs. Participants were also asked to describe their strategy for computing in the highly parallel, “multi-core” environment that is expected to dominate HPC architectures over the next few years. The report also includes a section with NERSC responses to the workshop findings. NERSC has many initiatives already underway that address key workshop findings and all of the action items are aligned with NERSC strategic plans.

73 NUCLEAR PHYSICS AND RADIATION PHYSICS↗

Turbulent Flow Simulation at the Exascale: Opportunities and Challenges Workshop: August 4-5, 2015, Washington, D.C.

This report details the impact exascale will bring to turbulent-flow simulations in applied science and technology. The need for accurate simulation of turbulent flows is evident across the DOE applied-science and engineering portfolios, including combustion, plasma physics, nuclear-reactor physics, wind energy, and atmospheric science. The workshop brought together experts in turbulent-flow simulation, computational mathematics, and high-performance computing. Building upon previous ASCR workshops on exascale computing, participants defined a research agenda and path forward that will enable scientists and engineers to continually leverage, engage, and direct advances in computational systems on the path to exascale computing.

97 MATHEMATICS AND COMPUTING↗

LSI computer design - SUMC/DV.

Advanced Technology Laboratories has designed, built, and tested the first CMOS general-purpose computer. The computer executes 32 instructions that are operation-code compatible with the IBM 360 and RCA Spectra 70 series of computers. The computer is supported by 2k words of main-memory LSI storage and a TTY peripheral for input and output operations. Additionally, a simulator, an assembler, and a loader have been constructed to provide software support to the hardware. This paper provides an overall picture of this computer project.

Clapp, W. A.↗

Recent progress in research pertaining to estimates of gas-side heat transfer in an aircraft gas turbine

A decade ago several important fundamental heat transfer phenomena were identified which were considered basic to the ability to predict heat transfer loads in aircraft gas turbines. The progress in addressing these fundamentals over the past ten years is assessed. Much reseach effort has been devoted to their study in university, industry and government labs and significant progress has been achieved. Advances in computer technology have enabled the modeling of complex 3-D fluid flow in gas turbines so necessary for heat transfer calculations. Advances in instrumentation plus improved data acquisition have brought about more reliable data sets. While much has advanced in the 1980's, much challenging research remains to be done. Several of these areas are suggested.

Graham, Robert W.↗

A brief overview of computational structures technology related activities at NASA Lewis Research Center

The presentation gives a partial overview of research and development underway in the Structures Division of LeRC, which collectively is referred to as the Computational Structures Technology Program. The activities in the program are diverse and encompass four major categories: (1) composite materials and structures; (2) probabilistic analysis and reliability; (3) design optimization and expert systems; and (4) computational methods and simulation. The approach of the program is comprehensive and entails exploration of fundamental theories of structural mechanics to accurately represent the complex physics governing engine structural performance, formulation, and implementation of computational techniques and integrated simulation strategies to provide accurate and efficient solutions of the governing theoretical models by exploiting the emerging advances in computer technology, and validation and verification through numerical and experimental tests to establish confidence and define the qualities and limitations of the resulting theoretical models and computational solutions. The program comprises both in-house and sponsored research activities. The remainder of the presentation provides a sample of activities to illustrate the breadth and depth of the program and to demonstrate the accomplishments and benefits that have resulted.

Hopkins, Dale A.↗

Laboratory Directed Research and Development Annual Report, Fiscal Year 2011

This report documents progress made on all LDRD-funded projects during fiscal year 2011. The following topics are discussed: (1) Advanced sensors and instrumentation; (2) Biological Sciences; (3) Chemistry; (4) Earth and space sciences; (5) Energy supply and use; (6) Engineering and manufacturing processes; (7) Materials science and technology; (8) Mathematics and computing sciences; (9) Nuclear science and engineering; and (10) Physics.

09 BIOMASS FUELS↗

Portage, Version 2.0

Portage is a software library system for physics remapping (mapping physics variables from one computational mesh to another) either within a single simulation code or between two disparate simulation codes. Portage is designed to utilize advanced-architecture compute platforms and to be easily extensible by third parties.

Herring, Angela↗

PHYSICS OF ECLIPSING BINARIES. II. TOWARD THE INCREASED MODEL FIDELITY

The precision of photometric and spectroscopic observations has been systematically improved in the last decade, mostly thanks to space-borne photometric missions and ground-based spectrographs dedicated to finding exoplanets. The field of eclipsing binary stars strongly benefited from this development. Eclipsing binaries serve as critical tools for determining fundamental stellar properties (masses, radii, temperatures, and luminosities), yet the models are not capable of reproducing observed data well, either because of the missing physics or because of insufficient precision. This led to a predicament where radiative and dynamical effects, insofar buried in noise, started showing up routinely in the data, but were not accounted for in the models. PHOEBE (PHysics Of Eclipsing BinariEs; http://phoebe-project.org) is an open source modeling code for computing theoretical light and radial velocity curves that addresses both problems by incorporating missing physics and by increasing the computational fidelity. In particular, we discuss triangulation as a superior surface discretization algorithm, meshing of rotating single stars, light travel time effects, advanced phase computation, volume conservation in eccentric orbits, and improved computation of local intensity across the stellar surfaces that includes the photon-weighted mode, the enhanced limb darkening treatment, the better reflection treatment, and Doppler boosting. Here we present the concepts on which PHOEBE is built and proofs of concept that demonstrate the increased model fidelity.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

Remote access of the ILLIAC 4

The ILLIAC-4 hardware is described. The Illiac system, the Advanced Research Projects Agency computer network, and IMLAC PDS-1 are included. The space shuttle flow simulation is demonstrated to show the feasibility of using an advanced computer from a remote location.

Stevens, K. G., Jr.↗