Abstract
We discuss the construction of finite element spaces of differential forms which satisfy the crucial assumptions of the finite element exterior calculus, namely that they can be assembled into subcomplexes of the de Rham complex which admit commuting projections. We present two families of spaces in the case of simplicial meshes, and two other families in the case of cubical meshes. We make use of the exterior calculus and the Koszul complex to define and understand the spaces. These tools allow us to treat a wide variety of situations, which are often treated separately, in a unified fashion.
The work of the author was supported by NSF grant DMS-1115291.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution.
Buying options
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Learn about institutional subscriptionsReferences
Arnold, D.N.: Differential complexes and numerical stability. In: Proceedings of the International Congress of Mathematicians, vol. I, Beijing, 2002, pp. 137–157. Higher Education Press, Beijing (2002). MR MR1989182 (2004h:65115)
Arnold, D.N., Awanou, G.: The serendipity family of finite elements. Found. Comput. Math. 11(3), 337–344 (2011). doi:10.1007/s10208-011-9087-3
Arnold, D.N., Awanou, G.: Finite element differential forms on cubical meshes. Preprint (2012). URL: http://arxiv.org/pdf/1204.2595
Arnold, D.N., Boffi, D., Bonizzoni, F.: Approximation by tensor product finite element differential forms (2012, in preparation)
Arnold, D.N., Falk, R.S., Winther, R.: Finite element exterior calculus, homological techniques, and applications. Acta Numer. 15, 1–155 (2006). MR MR2269741 (2007j:58002)
Arnold, D.N., Falk, R.S., Winther, R.: Finite element exterior calculus: from Hodge theory to numerical stability. Bull. Am. Math. Soc. 42(2), 281–354 (2010)
Baker, G.A.: Combinatorial Laplacians and Sullivan-Whitney forms. In: Differential Geometry, College Park, MD, 1981/1982. Progr. Math., vol. 32, pp. 1–33. Birkhäuser, Boston (1983). MR MR702525 (84m:58005)
Bossavit, A.: Whitney forms: a class of finite elements for three-dimensional computations in electromagnetism. IEEE Trans. Magn. 135(Part A), 493–500 (1988)
Brezzi, F., Douglas, J. Jr., Durán, R., Fortin, M.: Mixed finite elements for second order elliptic problems in three variables. Numer. Math. 51, 237–250 (1987). MR MR890035 (88f:65190)
Brezzi, F., Douglas, J. Jr., Marini, L.D.: Two families of mixed finite elements for second order elliptic problems. Numer. Math. 47, 217–235 (1985). MR MR799685 (87g:65133)
Ciarlet, P.G.: The Finite Element Method for Elliptic Problems. North-Holland, Amsterdam (1978). MR MR0520174 (58 #25001)
Cockburn, B., Qiu, W.: Commuting diagrams for the TNT elements on cubes. Math. Comput. (2012, to appear)
Dodziuk, J.: Finite-difference approach to the Hodge theory of harmonic forms. Am. J. Math. 98(1), 79–104 (1976). MR MR0407872 (53 #11642)
Dodziuk, J., Patodi, V.K.: Riemannian structures and triangulations of manifolds. J. Indian Math. Soc. (N.S.) 40(1–4), 1–52 (1976). MR MR0488179 (58 #7742)
Hiptmair, R.: Canonical construction of finite elements. Math. Comput. 68, 1325–1346 (1999). MR MR1665954 (2000b:65214)
Kotiuga, P.R.: Hodge decompositions and computational electromagnetics. PhD in Electrical Engineering, McGill University (1984)
Müller, W.: Analytic torsion and R-torsion of Riemannian manifolds. Adv. Math. 28(3), 233–305 (1978). MR MR498252 (80j:58065b)
Nédélec, J.-C.: Mixed finite elements in R 3. Numer. Math. 35, 315–341 (1980). MR MR592160 (81k:65125)
Nédélec, J.-C.: A new family of mixed finite elements in R 3. Numer. Math. 50, 57–81 (1986). MR MR864305 (88e:65145)
Raviart, P.-A., Thomas, J.-M.: A mixed finite element method for 2nd order elliptic problems. In: Mathematical Aspects of Finite Element Methods, Proc. Conf., Consiglio Naz. delle Ricerche (C.N.R.), Rome, 1975, pp. 292–315. Lecture Notes in Mathematics, vol. 606. Springer, Berlin (1977). MR MR0483555 (58 #3547)
Robin, J.W., Salamon, D.A.: Introduction to differential topology (2011). Lecture notes for a course at ETH Zürich. URL: http://www.math.ethz.ch/~salamon/PREPRINTS/difftop.pdf
Sullivan, D.: Differential forms and the topology of manifolds. In: Manifolds—Tokyo 1973, Proc. Internat. Conf., Tokyo, 1973, pp. 37–49. Univ. Tokyo Press, Tokyo (1975). MR MR0370611 (51 #6838)
Sullivan, D.: Infinitesimal computations in topology. Publ. Math. IHÉS 1977(47), 269–331 (1978). MR MR0646078 (58 #31119)
Whitney, H.: Geometric Integration Theory. Princeton University Press, Princeton (1957). MR MR0087148 (19,309c)
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Additional information
In memory of Enrico Magenes, in gratitude for his deep and elegant mathematics, which taught us, and his profound humanity, which inspired us.
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2013 Springer-Verlag Italia
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Arnold, D.N. (2013). Spaces of Finite Element Differential Forms. In: Brezzi, F., Colli Franzone, P., Gianazza, U., Gilardi, G. (eds) Analysis and Numerics of Partial Differential Equations. Springer INdAM Series, vol 4. Springer, Milano. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-88-470-2592-9_9
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-88-470-2592-9_9
Publisher Name: Springer, Milano
Print ISBN: 978-88-470-2591-2
Online ISBN: 978-88-470-2592-9
eBook Packages: Mathematics and StatisticsMathematics and Statistics (R0)