A High-Order Accurate Parallel Solver for Maxwell's Equations on Overlapping Grids

A scheme for the solution of the time dependent Maxwell’s equations on composite overlapping grids is described. The method uses high-order accurate approximations in space and time for Maxwell’s equations written as a second-order vector wave equation. High-order accurate symmetric difference approximations to the generalized Laplace operator are constructed for curvilinear component grids. The modified equation approach is used to develop high-order accurate approximations that only use three time levels and have the same time-stepping restriction as the second-order scheme. Discrete boundary conditions for perfect electrical conductors and for material interfaces are developed and analyzed. The implementation is optimized for component grids that are Cartesian, resulting in a fast and efficient method. The solver runs on parallel machines with each component grid distributed across one or more processors. Numerical results in twoand three-dimensions are presented for the the fourth-order accurate version of the method. These results demonstrate the accuracy and efficiency of the approach.