A COGENT case study: Supporting Applications with Chombo

TL;DR

This paper presents a case study of how the Chombo software framework was extended to support the COGENT scientific application, enabling advanced simulations of tokamak edge layers and benefiting other similar applications.

Contribution

It details the design and implementation of new capabilities in Chombo, such as higher-order discretizations, tailored to support COGENT's specific modeling needs.

Findings

Extended Chombo supported COGENT's edge layer simulations.

New capabilities facilitated other applications with similar requirements.

Framework enhancements improved simulation accuracy and flexibility.

Abstract

We present a case study of how a software framework (Chombo) supported the specific needs of a scientific application (COGENT). Since its inception in 2000, the Chombo framework has supported various applications. One example of such support has been the collaboration with the Edge Simulation Laboratory to build the COGENT model. The specific needs of the COGENT effort required the design and implementation of a set of new capabilities in the Chombo framework, such as higher-order mapped-multiblock discretizations and multi-dimensional code organization. These capabilities allowed COGENT to develop a unique simulation capability for modeling the edge layers in tokamaks. Once developed, these capabilities were able to support other applications which had similar needs.