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FEniCS Project
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<h2 id="design-and-components">Design and components</h2> <p>The FEniCS Project is designed as an umbrella project for a collection of interoperable components. The core components are<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:3" href="#fn:3"><sup>3</sup></a> </p> <ul><li>UFL (unified form language), a <a href="/facts/Domain-specific_language/n18H1foD">domain-specific language</a> embedded in <a href="/facts/Python_(programming_language)/YbuGqofa">Python</a> for specifying finite element discretizations of differential equations in terms of finite element variational forms;</li> <li>FIAT (finite element automatic tabulator), the finite element backend of FEniCS, a Python module for generation of arbitrary order finite element basis functions on <a href="/facts/Simplex/0FCfNRN8">simplices</a>;</li> <li>FFC (fenics form compiler), a <a href="/facts/Compiler/WNfCDFJe">compiler</a> for finite element variational forms taking UFL code as input and generating UFC output;</li> <li>UFC (unified form-assembly code), a <a href="/facts/C%252B%252B/Et0F2qn9">C++</a> interface consisting of low-level functions for evaluating and assembling finite element variational forms;</li> <li>Instant, a Python module for inlining <a href="/facts/C_(programming_language)/Ky2No763">C</a> and C++ code in Python;</li> <li>DOLFIN, a C++/Python library providing data structures and algorithms for finite element meshes, automated finite element assembly, and numerical linear algebra.</li></ul> <p>DOLFIN, the computational high-performance C++ backend of FEniCS, functions as the main problem-solving environment (in both C++ and Python) and user interface. Its functionality integrates the other FEniCS components and handles communication with external libraries such as <a href="/facts/PETSc/kpgPvndI">PETSc</a>, <a href="/facts/Trilinos/sREgsmJe">Trilinos</a> and <a href="/facts/Eigen_(C%252B%252B_library)/js8e67k3">Eigen</a> for numerical linear algebra, ParMETIS and SCOTCH for mesh partitioning, and <a href="/facts/Message_Passing_Interface/BEuBgDpm">MPI</a> and <a href="/facts/OpenMP/69IpI80o">OpenMP</a> for distributed computing. </p><p>As of May 2022, DOLFINx is the recommended user-interface of the FEniCS project.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:4" href="#fn:4"><sup>4</sup></a> </p> <h2 id="history">History</h2> <p>The FEniCS Project was initiated in 2003 as a research collaboration between the <a href="/facts/University_of_Chicago/z6zRMUmV">University of Chicago</a> and <a href="/facts/Chalmers_University_of_Technology/L9PhS9LV">Chalmers University of Technology</a>. The following institutions are currently, or have been, actively involved in the development of the project </p> <ul><li><a href="/facts/Argonne_National_Laboratory/EAoR1Rnm">Argonne National Laboratory</a></li> <li><a href="/facts/Chalmers_University_of_Technology/L9PhS9LV">Chalmers University of Technology</a></li> <li><a href="/facts/Charles_University/auLIgrty">Charles University</a><a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:5" href="#fn:5"><sup>5</sup></a></li> <li><a href="/facts/Delft_University_of_Technology/wtPV7UmG">Delft University of Technology</a></li> <li><a href="/facts/Royal_Institute_of_Technology/VM9jmsXQ">Royal Institute of Technology</a></li> <li><a href="/facts/Simula_Research_Laboratory/ojymNlrk">Simula Research Laboratory</a></li> <li><a href="/facts/University_of_Cambridge/0la7aX9o">University of Cambridge</a></li> <li><a href="/facts/University_of_Chicago/z6zRMUmV">University of Chicago</a></li> <li><a href="/facts/University_of_Luxembourg/JR9qcyB6">University of Luxembourg</a><a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:6" href="#fn:6"><sup>6</sup></a></li></ul> <h2 id="dolfinx">DOLFINx</h2> <p>Since 2019, the core components of the FEniCS project have received a major refactoring.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:7" href="#fn:7"><sup>7</sup></a> resulting in <a href="https://github.com/FEniCS/dolfinx/">DOLFINx</a>.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:8" href="#fn:8"><sup>8</sup></a> DOLFINx supports many new features not available in the old DOLFIN interface, including: </p> <ul><li>Arbitrary degree finite elements on interval, triangle, quadrilateral, tetrahedral and hexahedral cells, including unstructured meshes without special ordering;</li> <li>Meshes with flat or curved cells;</li> <li>Custom partitioning of cells across multiple processes;</li> <li>Parallel IO via <a href="/facts/Gmsh/sYvz0Xsd">Gmsh</a>, <a href="/facts/VTK/SXTm1vTl">VTK</a>, <a href="https://docs.pyvista.org/version/stable/">PyVista</a>, and <a href="https://adios2.readthedocs.io/en/latest/">ADIOS2</a>;</li> <li>Assembly and solvers using different floating point scalar types, including complex types;</li> <li>Assembly of custom element kernels written using <a href="/facts/Numba/9Ma5TygS">Numba</a>;</li> <li>Interpolation of functions into arbitrary function spaces;</li> <li>Interpolation between function spaces built on different (non-matching) meshes, including meshes using non-affine geometry;</li> <li>Ability to non-intrusively support different linear algebra backends, e.g., <a href="/facts/NumPy/T6FnhWWD">NumPy</a>, <a href="/facts/Portable%2c_Extensible_Toolkit_for_Scientific_Computation/kpgPvndI">PETSc</a>, <a href="/facts/Trilinos/sREgsmJe">Trilinos</a>, and <a href="/facts/Eigen_(C%252B%252B_library)/js8e67k3">Eigen</a>;</li> <li>User-defined finite elements.</li></ul> <h2 id="see-also">See also</h2> <ul><li><a href="/facts/List_of_finite_element_software_packages/xFqyMUdG">List of finite element software packages</a></li> <li><a href="/facts/List_of_numerical_analysis_software/yKFzDBDK">List of numerical analysis software</a></li> <li>Using the <a href="/facts/FEATool_Multiphysics/2DQ7VUc6">FEATool Multiphysics</a> GUI to set up and solve FEniCS multiphysics models<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:9" href="#fn:9"><sup>9</sup></a><a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:10" href="#fn:10"><sup>10</sup></a></li> <li><a href="https://defelement.org/">DefElement: An encyclopedia of finite element definitions</a></li></ul> <h2 id="external-links">External links</h2> <ul><li><a href="https://github.com/fenics/dolfinx">DOLFINx</a> on <a href="/facts/GitHub/n1hNCsc3">GitHub</a></li> <li><a href="https://bitbucket.org/fenics-project">The (legacy) FEniCS project</a> on <a href="/facts/Bitbucket/Roe2ucoa">Bitbucket</a></li></ul> <h2 id="references">References</h2> <ol> <li id="fn:1"><p>"The FEniCS Project page". The FEniCS Project. Retrieved 28 July 2016. <a href="http://www.fenicsproject.org" target="_blank">http://www.fenicsproject.org</a> <a href="#fnref:1" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:2"><p>Anders Logg; Kent-Andre Mardal; Garth N. Wells, eds. (2011). Automated Solution of Differential Equations by the Finite Element Method. Springer. ISBN 978-3-642-23098-1. <a href="978-3-642-23098-1" target="_blank">978-3-642-23098-1</a> <a href="#fnref:2" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:3"><p>"Core components of the FEniCS Project". The FEniCS Project. Archived from the original on 4 November 2011. Retrieved 8 December 2011. <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20111104045327/http://fenicsproject.org/about/components.html#core-components" target="_blank">https://web.archive.org/web/20111104045327/http://fenicsproject.org/about/components.html#core-components</a> <a href="#fnref:3" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:4"><p>"The new DOLFINx solver is now recommended over DOLFIN". fenicsproject.discourse.group. <a href="https://fenicsproject.discourse.group/t/the-new-dolfinx-solver-is-now-recommended-over-dolfin/8249" target="_blank">https://fenicsproject.discourse.group/t/the-new-dolfinx-solver-is-now-recommended-over-dolfin/8249</a> <a href="#fnref:4" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:5"><p>FEniCS Governance documents. Retrieved 28 July 2016. <a href="https://bitbucket.org/fenics-project/governance/src/49fe0fefd2c7b8b1402b8c6a3c17f830835f8483/people.md?fileviewer=file-view-default" target="_blank">https://bitbucket.org/fenics-project/governance/src/49fe0fefd2c7b8b1402b8c6a3c17f830835f8483/people.md?fileviewer=file-view-default</a> <a href="#fnref:5" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:6"><p>FEniCS Governance documents. Retrieved 28 July 2016. <a href="https://bitbucket.org/fenics-project/governance/src/49fe0fefd2c7b8b1402b8c6a3c17f830835f8483/people.md?fileviewer=file-view-default" target="_blank">https://bitbucket.org/fenics-project/governance/src/49fe0fefd2c7b8b1402b8c6a3c17f830835f8483/people.md?fileviewer=file-view-default</a> <a href="#fnref:6" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:7"><p>"Roadmap 2019-2020 – FEniCS Project". fenicsproject.org. Archived from the original on 2019-06-07. <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190607131947/https://fenicsproject.org/fenics-project-roadmap-2019/" target="_blank">https://web.archive.org/web/20190607131947/https://fenicsproject.org/fenics-project-roadmap-2019/</a> <a href="#fnref:7" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:8"><p>"DOLFINx: The next generation FEniCS problem solving environment". Retrieved 2024-04-04. <a href="https://zenodo.org/doi/10.5281/zenodo.10447665" target="_blank">https://zenodo.org/doi/10.5281/zenodo.10447665</a> <a href="#fnref:8" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:9"><p>"Python FEM and Multiphysics Simulations with FEniCS and FEATool". featool.com. Retrieved 2017-06-28. <a href="https://www.featool.com/tutorial/2017/06/16/Python-FEM-and-Multiphysics-Simulations-with-Fenics-and-FEATool.html" target="_blank">https://www.featool.com/tutorial/2017/06/16/Python-FEM-and-Multiphysics-Simulations-with-Fenics-and-FEATool.html</a> <a href="#fnref:9" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:10"><p>Abali, Bilen Emek (2017). Computational Reality | SpringerLink. Advanced Structured Materials. Vol. 55. doi:10.1007/978-981-10-2444-3. ISBN 978-981-10-2443-6. <a href="978-981-10-2443-6" target="_blank">978-981-10-2443-6</a> <a href="#fnref:10" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> </ol>