TY - JOUR
T1 - Dynamic Load Balancing for the Parallel, Adaptive, Multigrid Solution of Implicit Phase-Field Simulations
AU - Chen , Meng-Huo
AU - Bollada , Peter C.
AU - Jimack , Peter K.
JO - International Journal of Numerical Analysis and Modeling
VL - 2
SP - 297
EP - 318
PY - 2018
DA - 2018/10
SN - 16
DO - http://doi.org/
UR - https://global-sci.org/intro/article_detail/ijnam/12805.html
KW - Load-balancing, parallel computation, multigrid.
AB - <p style="text-align: justify;">In this paper we assess the performance of a selection of load balancing strategies for a
parallel, adaptive multigrid solver that has been developed for the implicit solution of phase-field
problems. The strategies considered include a number of standard approaches and a new technique
that we propose specifically for multigrid solvers. This technique takes account of the sequential
nature of the grid correction used in multiplicative multilevel algorithms such as multigrid. The
paper focuses on two phase-field example problems which model the rapid solidification of an
undercooled binary alloy: using isothermal and non-isothermal models respectively. We undertake
a systematic comparison of the different load-balancing strategies for a selection of different
adaptive mesh scenarios. We conclude that the optimal choice of load-balancing strategy depends
critically on the computation to communication ratio of the parallel multigrid solver, and that in
the computation-dominated limit our proposed technique is typically the most effective of those
considered.</p>