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Parallel Construction of Nonlinear Force-Free Fields

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Abstract

A numerical approach to calculating nonlinear force-free fields is presented. The approach is similar to Sakurai (1981) being a current-field iteration scheme using the integral solution to Ampere's law (the Biot–Savart law). However, the method of solution presented here is simpler than Sakurai's approach, in that the field is directly constructed on a grid without the intermediate solution of a large system of nonlinear equations. The method also permits straightforward implementation on parallel computers. Results of applying the method to a number test cases, including boundary conditions with substantial currents, are presented.

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Wheatland, M. Parallel Construction of Nonlinear Force-Free Fields. Solar Physics 222, 247–264 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1023/B:SOLA.0000043579.93988.6f

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