The DiRAC 2.5x Facility
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Cambridge
Department Name: Institute of Astronomy
Abstract
Physicists across the astronomy, nuclear and particle physics communities are focussed on understanding how the Universe works at a very fundamental level. The distance scales with which they work vary by 50 orders of magnitude from the smallest distances probed by experiments at the Large Hadron Collider, deep within the atomic nucleus, to the largest scale galaxy clusters discovered out in space. The Science challenges, however, are linked through questions such as: How did the Universe begin and how is it evolving? and What are the fundamental constituents and fabric of the Universe and how do they interact?
Progress requires new astronomical observations and experimental data but also new theoretical insights. Theoretical understanding comes increasingly from large-scale computations that allow us to confront the consequences of our theories very accurately with the data or allow us to interrogate the data in detail to extract information that has impact on our theories. These computations test the fastest computers that we have and push the boundaries of technology in this sector. They also provide an excellent environment for training students in state-of-the-art techniques for code optimisation and data mining and visualisation.
The DiRAC2 HPC facility has been operating since 2012, providing computing resources for theoretical research in all areas of particle physics, astronomy, cosmology and nuclear physics supported by STFC. It is a highly productive facility, generating more than 250 papers annually in international, peer-reviewed journals. However, the DiRAC2 hardware is now at least 5 years old and is therefore at significant risk of failure. The loss of any one of the DiRAC2 services would have a potentially disastrous impact on the research communities which rely on it to deliver their scientific research.
The main purpose of the requested funding for the DiRAC2.5x project is to replace the ageing DiRAC2 while taking advantage of recent hardware advances to provide some new capabilities (e.g. i/o acceleration using flash storage) as prototypes for the proposed DiRAC3 services.
DiRAC2.5x builds on the success of the DiRAC HPC facility and will provide the resources needed to support cutting-edge research during 2018 in all areas of science supported by STFC. While the funding is required to "keep the lights on", the science programme will continue to be world-leading. Examples of the projects which will benefit from this investment include:
(i) lattice quantum chromodynamics (QCD) calculations of the properties of fundamental particles from first principles;
(ii) improving the potential of experiments at CERN's Large Hadron Collider for discovery of new physics by increasing the accuracy of theoretical predictions for rare processes involving the fundamental constituents of matter known as quarks;
(iii) simulations of the merger of pairs of black holes which generate gravitational waves such as those recently discovered by the LIGO consortium;
(iv) the most realistic simulations to date of the formation and evolution of galaxies in the Universe;
(v) the accretion of gas onto supermassive black holes, the most efficient means of extracting energy from matter and the engine which drives galaxy formation and evolution;
(vi) new models of our own Milky Way galaxy calibrated using new data from the European Space Agency's GAIA satellite;
(vii) detailed simulations of the interior of the sun and of planetary interiors;
(viii) the formation of stars in clusters - for the first time it will be possible to follow the formation of stars many times more massive than the sun.
Progress requires new astronomical observations and experimental data but also new theoretical insights. Theoretical understanding comes increasingly from large-scale computations that allow us to confront the consequences of our theories very accurately with the data or allow us to interrogate the data in detail to extract information that has impact on our theories. These computations test the fastest computers that we have and push the boundaries of technology in this sector. They also provide an excellent environment for training students in state-of-the-art techniques for code optimisation and data mining and visualisation.
The DiRAC2 HPC facility has been operating since 2012, providing computing resources for theoretical research in all areas of particle physics, astronomy, cosmology and nuclear physics supported by STFC. It is a highly productive facility, generating more than 250 papers annually in international, peer-reviewed journals. However, the DiRAC2 hardware is now at least 5 years old and is therefore at significant risk of failure. The loss of any one of the DiRAC2 services would have a potentially disastrous impact on the research communities which rely on it to deliver their scientific research.
The main purpose of the requested funding for the DiRAC2.5x project is to replace the ageing DiRAC2 while taking advantage of recent hardware advances to provide some new capabilities (e.g. i/o acceleration using flash storage) as prototypes for the proposed DiRAC3 services.
DiRAC2.5x builds on the success of the DiRAC HPC facility and will provide the resources needed to support cutting-edge research during 2018 in all areas of science supported by STFC. While the funding is required to "keep the lights on", the science programme will continue to be world-leading. Examples of the projects which will benefit from this investment include:
(i) lattice quantum chromodynamics (QCD) calculations of the properties of fundamental particles from first principles;
(ii) improving the potential of experiments at CERN's Large Hadron Collider for discovery of new physics by increasing the accuracy of theoretical predictions for rare processes involving the fundamental constituents of matter known as quarks;
(iii) simulations of the merger of pairs of black holes which generate gravitational waves such as those recently discovered by the LIGO consortium;
(iv) the most realistic simulations to date of the formation and evolution of galaxies in the Universe;
(v) the accretion of gas onto supermassive black holes, the most efficient means of extracting energy from matter and the engine which drives galaxy formation and evolution;
(vi) new models of our own Milky Way galaxy calibrated using new data from the European Space Agency's GAIA satellite;
(vii) detailed simulations of the interior of the sun and of planetary interiors;
(viii) the formation of stars in clusters - for the first time it will be possible to follow the formation of stars many times more massive than the sun.
Planned Impact
The anticipated impact of the DiRAC2.5x HPC facility aligns closely with the recently published UK Industrial Strategy. As such, many of our key impacts will be driven by our engagements with industry. Each service provider for DiRAC2.5x has a local industrial strategy to deliver increased levels of industrial returns over the next three years. The "Pathways to impact" document which is attached to this proposal describes the overall industrial strategy for DiRAC2.5x, including our strategic goals and key performance indicators.
Organisations
Publications
Bennett E
(2020)
S p ( 4 ) gauge theories on the lattice: Quenched fundamental and antisymmetric fermions
in Physical Review D
Beraldo E Silva L
(2023)
Orbital Support and Evolution of Flat Profiles of Bars (Shoulders)
in The Astrophysical Journal
Bertulani C
(2021)
Examination of the sensitivity of quasifree reactions to details of the bound-state overlap functions
in Physical Review C
Beutler F
(2019)
Primordial features from linear to nonlinear scales
in Physical Review Research
Beutler F
(2019)
Primordial Features from Linear to Nonlinear Scales
Beutler F
(2019)
Primordial features from linear to nonlinear scales
Blondin S
(2022)
StaNdaRT: a repository of standardised test models and outputs for supernova radiative transfer
in Astronomy & Astrophysics
Blum T
(2023)
Update of Euclidean windows of the hadronic vacuum polarization
in Physical Review D
Bolton J
(2017)
The Sherwood simulation suite: overview and data comparisons with the Lyman a forest at redshifts 2 = z = 5
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Bolton J
(2022)
Limits on non-canonical heating and turbulence in the intergalactic medium from the low redshift Lyman a forest
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Booth R
(2021)
Modelling the delivery of dust from discs to ionized winds
Booth R
(2021)
Modelling the delivery of dust from discs to ionized winds
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Booth R
(2021)
Modeling the delivery of dust from discs to ionized winds
Bourne M
(2017)
AGN jet feedback on a moving mesh: cocoon inflation, gas flows and turbulence
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Bourne M
(2021)
AGN jet feedback on a moving mesh: gentle cluster heating by weak shocks and lobe disruption
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Bourne M
(2019)
AGN jet feedback on a moving mesh: lobe energetics and X-ray properties in a realistic cluster environment
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Bourne Martin A.
(2019)
AGN jet feedback on a moving mesh: lobe energetics and X-ray properties in a realistic cluster environment
in arXiv e-prints
Bowesman C
(2023)
A hyperfine-resolved spectroscopic model for vanadium monoxide ( 51 V 16 O)
in Molecular Physics
Brady S
(2023)
Solving the initial conditions problem for modified gravity theories
in Physical Review D
Buividovich P
(2020)
Electric conductivity in finite-density S U ( 2 ) lattice gauge theory with dynamical fermions
in Physical Review D
Buividovich P
(2021)
Numerical study of the chiral separation effect in two-color QCD at finite density
Buividovich P
(2021)
Static magnetic susceptibility in finite-density $$SU\left( 2\right) $$ lattice gauge theory
in The European Physical Journal A
Buividovich P
(2023)
Real-time simulations of quantum spin chains: Density of states and reweighting approaches
in Physical Review B
Buividovich P
(2020)
Numerical Study of the Chiral Separation Effect in Two-Color QCD at Finite Density
Buividovich P
(2021)
Numerical study of the chiral separation effect in two-color QCD at finite density
in Physical Review D
Cabayol-Garcia L
(2023)
A neural network emulator for the Lyman-a forest 1D flux power spectrum
in Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Cabayol-Garcia L
(2023)
A neural network emulator for the Lyman-$a$ 1D flux power spectrum
Cardoso V
(2023)
Curvature and dynamical spacetimes: can we peer into the quantum regime?
in Classical and Quantum Gravity
Chang C
(2023)
Global fits of simplified models for dark matter with GAMBIT II. Vector dark matter with an s-channel vector mediator
in The European Physical Journal C
Chang C
(2023)
Global fits of simplified models for dark matter with GAMBIT I. Scalar and fermionic models with s-channel vector mediators
in The European Physical Journal C
Changeat Q
(2022)
Five Key Exoplanet Questions Answered via the Analysis of 25 Hot-Jupiter Atmospheres in Eclipse
in The Astrophysical Journal Supplement Series
Changeat Q
(2021)
An Exploration of Model Degeneracies with a Unified Phase Curve Retrieval Analysis: The Light and Dark Sides of WASP-43 b
in The Astrophysical Journal