The Computational Physics Group carries out research and development in collaboration with all of LLNL. Emphasis is placed on the use of modern numerical and computational techniques to solve problems. Examples include the use of CASC developed linear and non-linear solvers in Laboratory programmatic codes used to solve radiation transport, fluid dynamics, various types of particle transport, and multi physics systems. Group members contribute to efforts in defense technology, laser target simulations, materials science, astrophysics, engineering design, computational performance, and others.

Computational Physics Group members deal with an extremely broad variety of problems. The bottom line for us is to solve scientific problems by combining understanding of physical systems with good code design, appropriate algorithms, and efficient implementations, typically on parallel computers. Our research is usually motivated by consideration of issues that arise from real-world situations. Our group members collaborate on physics-based projects with scientists from organizations around the Laboratory, as well as on multi-institutional projects with universities and other labs.

Group Lead

Robert Anderson: hydrodynamics, computational physics, adaptive mesh refinement

Research Staff

Robert Blake: multi-physics, multi-scale, numerical algorithms, parallel and distributed computing, scientific machine learning, compiler design and optimization, clinical simulations, cardiac simulations

Peter Brown: linear and nonlinear systems, neutral particle transport

Tarik Dzanic

Debojyoti Ghosh: numerical methods for hyperbolic PDEs, finite difference and finite volume methods, implicit-explicit time integration, compressible flows, scalable algorithms

Brian Gunney: adaptive mesh refinement, HPC, numerical methods for partial differential equations, computational physics

Terry Haut: high-order methods for neutral particle transport

Michael Lambert: parallel algorithms, linear solvers, Z-pinch simulation, deterministic and non-deterministic transport, strongly driven system simulation

John Loffeld: time integration, conservative spatial discretization, neutral particle transport, close-to-the-metal performance tuning

Nathan Masters: computational physics, interface reconstruction, adaptive mesh refinement, rarefied gas dynamics

Jose Milovich: laser target simulations, hydrodynamic instabilities, performance tuning, parallel algorithms

Lee Ricketson: numerical simulation of plasmas, particle-in-cell methods, finite volume methods, kinetic equations, sparse grid methods, Monte Carlo methods, multi-scale methods, stochastic differential equations

Kambiz Salari

Genia Vogman: plasma physics, continuum kinetic simulations, high-order finite volume methods, parallel algorithms