Progress report for a research program in computational physics

Abstract

Task D's research is focused on the understanding of elementary particle physics through the techniques of quantum field theory. We make intensive use of computers to aid our research. During the last year we have made significant progress in understanding the weak interactions through the use of Monte Carlo methods as applied to the equations of quenched lattice QCD. We have launched a program to understand full (not quenched) lattice QCD on relatively large lattices using massively parallel computers. Because of our awareness that Monte Carlo methods might not be able to give a good solution to field theories with the computer power likely to be available to us for the forseeable future we have launched an entirely different numerical approach to study these problems. This Source Galerkin'' method is based on an algebraic approach to the field theoretic equations of motion and is (somewhat) related to variational and finite element techniques applied to a source rather than a coordinate space. The results for relatively simple problems are sensationally good. In particular, fermions can be treated in a way which allows them to retain their status as independent dynamical entities in the theory. 8 refs.