Section: Overall Objectives

General setting

Magique-3D  is a joint project-team between Inria and the Department of Applied Mathematics of the University of Pau (LMAP), in partnership with CNRS. The main mission of Magique-3D  is to develop and validate efficient solution methodologies for solving complex three-dimensional geophysical problems, with a particular emphasis on problems arising in seismic imaging, in response to the local industrial and community needs. Indeed, as it is well known, the region of Pau has long-standing tradition in the Geosciences activities. However, in spite of the recent significant advances in algorithmic considerations as well as in computing platforms, the solution of most real-world problems in this field remains intractable. Hence, there is a scientific need of pressing importance to design new numerical methods for solving efficiently and accurately wave propagation problems defined in strongly heterogeneous domains. More recently, Magique-3D  has launched a research program in computational helioseismology. The idea is to apply seismic imaging techniques for understanding the interior of the Sun. This new research area will lead the team to develop new full waveform simulations of vector wave problems including new physical parameters like the gravity. Still in the spirit of widening its scope of applications from its skills in seismic imaging, Magique-3D  has also developed a strong research partnership for the design of wind instruments based upon the solution of inverse problems.

Magique-3D  program possesses an exceptional combination that is a prerequisite for accomplishing its mission: the investigator backgrounds, research interests, and technical skills complement to form a research team with a potential for significant impact on the computational infrastructure of geophysical, acoustical and astrophysical sciences. The research record of Magique-3D  group covers a large spectrum of accomplishments in the field of wave propagation including (a) the design, validation, and performance assessment of a class of DG-methods for solving efficiently high frequency wave problems, (b) the construction, convergence analysis, and performance assessment of various absorbing-type boundary conditions that are key ingredients for solving problems in infinite domains, (c) the development of asymptotic models that are the primary candidate in the presence of heterogeneities that are small compared to the wave length, and (d) the development and analysis of high-order time schemes for solving time-dependent wave problems. Very recently, the team has also opened its research activities to laboratory experiments which help to improve wave modelling by giving a straightforward access to measurements that can be used for calibration. Magique-3D  has built strong collaborations and partnerships with various institutions including (a) local industry (TOTAL), (b) national research centers (ONERA and CEA), and (c) international academic partnerships (e.g. Interdisciplinary Research Institute for the Sciences (IRIS) at California State University, Northridge, USA; University of Pays Basque and Basque Center of Applied Mathematics at Bilbao, Spain; University of California at Berkeley, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Max Planck Institute at Göttingen).