Ontological approach to formalization of knowledge in computational plasma physics

Abstract

Computational plasma physics is a wide area of research, which includes a certain set of physical phenomena, mathematical equations, numerical methods, programming strategies, and hardware architectures that directly follow each other. To design an efficient code for solving a computational plasma physics problem, the researcher should have a clear understanding of the relationships between the concepts of physics, mathematics, computer science, and computer architecture. Ontology is one of the effective ways to realize (provide) such an understanding. Authors propose an approach to design an ontology which will show how physical phenomena determine mathematical equations being used, how the equations define numerical methods, and how methods enable programming strategies to form an architecture-efficient implementation of problem solution.