Physics Help
Computational Physics
Computational physics
Computational physics is the study and
implementation of numerical
algorithms
in order to solve problems in
physics for
which a quantitative theory already exists.
Physicists often have a very precise mathematical theory
describing exactly how a system will operate. Unfortunately, it is often the
case that solving these equations in order to produce a useful prediction is a
computationally difficult problem. This is especially true with
quantum mechanics, where only a handful of simple models can be solved
exactly. Even apparently simple problems, such as calculating the
wavefunction of an electron orbiting an atom in a strong
electric field, may require great effort to formulate a practical algorithm.
In addition, quantum mechanical problems are generally
exponential in the size of the system (see
computational complexity theory).
Many other more general numerical problems fall loosely under
the domain of computational physics, although they could easily be considered
pure
mathematics or part of any number of applied areas. For example:
-
Solving
differential equations
-
Evaluating
integrals
-
Stochastic methods, specifically the
Monte Carlo Method
-
Specialised
partial differential equation methods, for example the
finite difference method and the
finite element method
-
The
matrix eigenvalue problem - i.e. the problem of finding
eigenvalues of very large matrices.
Home | Up | Astrophysics | Atomic, Molecular & Optical Physics | Computational Physics | Condensed Matter Physics | Cosmology
Cryogenics | Fluid Dynamics | Polymer Physics | Optics | Materials Physics | Mechanics
Nuclear Physics | Plasma Physics | Particle Physics | Vehicle Dynamics
Physics Help, made by MultiMedia | Free content and software
This guide is licensed under the GNU
Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia.
| 
