1. A category theoretical interpretation of discretization in Galerkin finite element method
- Author
-
Valtteri Lahtinen, Antti Stenvall, Tampere University, Electrical Engineering, Research group: Modelling and superconductivity, Department of Applied Physics, Aalto-yliopisto, and Aalto University
- Subjects
Finite element method ,Discretization ,General Mathematics ,Field (mathematics) ,Basis function ,010103 numerical & computational mathematics ,0603 philosophy, ethics and religion ,01 natural sciences ,Domain (mathematical analysis) ,Mathematics::Numerical Analysis ,symbols.namesake ,Engineering ,111 Mathematics ,Applied mathematics ,0101 mathematics ,Category theory ,Mathematics ,Hilbert space ,06 humanities and the arts ,060302 philosophy ,symbols ,Mathematical modeling ,Vector space - Abstract
The Galerkin finite element method (FEM) is used widely in finding approximative solutions to field problems in engineering and natural sciences. When utilizing FEM, the field problem is said to be discretized. In this paper, we interpret discretization in FEM through category theory, unifying the concept of discreteness in FEM with that of discreteness in other fields of mathematics, such as topology. This reveals structural properties encoded in this concept: we propose that discretization is a dagger mono with a discrete domain in the category of Hilbert spaces made concrete over the category of vector spaces. Moreover, we discuss parallel decomposability of discretization, and through examples, connect it to different FEM formulations and choices of basis functions.
- Published
- 2020