[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 2 (Wednesday, January 3, 2001)]
[Notices]
[Pages 357-361]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-78]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY

Office of Science


Office of Science Financial Assistance Program Notice 01-10: 
Scientific Discovery Through Advanced Computing--Advanced Computational 
Research in Fusion Science

AGENCY: U.S. Department of Energy (DOE).

ACTION: Notice inviting research grant applications.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: The Office of Fusion Energy Sciences (OFES) of the Office of 
Science (SC), U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) hereby announces its 
interest in receiving grant applications for the development of 
scientific simulation codes needed to address complex problems in 
fusion energy sciences. The goal is the creation of codes that achieve 
high performance on a single node, scale to hundreds of nodes and 
thousands of processors, and have the potential to be ported to future 
generations of high performance computers. This announcement is focused 
on some of the topical areas that are important to developing 
integrated models of fusion systems and require the capabilities of 
terascale computers. Specific areas of interest include:
     Turbulence and transport in order to predict energy and 
particle confinement in plasmas,
     Macroscopic equilibrium and stability to be able to 
predict stability limits in magnetically confined plasmas,
     Magnetic reconnection in order to understand the dynamo 
and ``sawtooth'' oscillations in plasmas,
     Electromagnetic wave/particle interactions to be able to 
predict heating and current drive in plasmas,
     Boundary layer effects in plasmas in order to predict the 
transport of heat and particles in the edge region of a fusion device, 
and
     Electromagnetic fields and beam dynamics in particle 
accelerators to model efficient, high-current heavy ion accelerators.
    The full text of Program Notice 01-10 is available via the Internet 
at the following web site address: http://www.science.doe.gov/production/grants/grants.html.

DATES: Preapplications referencing this program notice must be received 
by 4:30 P.M. EST, January 31, 2001. A response encouraging or 
discouraging the submission of a formal application will be 
communicated by e-mail within 14 days.
    Formal applications submitted in response to this notice must be 
received no later than 4:30 P.M., March 15, 2001, to be accepted for 
merit review and consideration for award in Fiscal Year 2001.

ADDRESSES: Preapplications referencing Program Notice 01-10 should be 
forwarded to: U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Science, Office of 
Fusion Energy Sciences, SC-55, 19901 Germantown Road, Germantown, 
Maryland 20874-1290, ATTN: John Sauter. Preapplications can also be 
submitted via E-mail at the following E-mail address: 
[email protected] Formal applications referencing Program 
Notice 01-10 should be forwarded to: U.S. Department of Energy, Office 
of Science, Grants and Contracts Division, SC-64, 19901 Germantown 
Road, Germantown, Maryland 20874-1290, ATTN: Program Notice 01-10. The 
above address must be used when submitting applications by U.S. Postal 
Service Express Mail, any commercial mail delivery service, or when 
hand-carried by the applicant. An original and seven copies of the 
application must be submitted.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. Stephen Eckstrand or Dr. Arnold 
Kritz, Office of Fusion Energy Sciences, SC-55, U.S. Department of 
Energy, 19901 Germantown Road, Germantown, MD 20874-1290. Telephone 
numbers and e-mail addresses are listed below:

Stephen Eckstrand: telephone (301) 903-5546, e-mail 
[email protected]
Arnold Kritz: telephone (301) 903-2027, e-mail 
[email protected]

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Background: Scientific Discovery Through Advanced Computing

    Advanced scientific computing will be a key contributor to 
scientific research in the 21st Century. Within the Office of Science 
(SC), scientific computing programs and facilities are already 
essential to progress in many areas of research critical to the nation. 
Major scientific challenges exist in all SC research programs that can 
best be addressed through advances in scientific supercomputing, e.g., 
designing materials with selected properties, elucidating the structure 
and function of proteins, understanding and controlling plasma 
turbulence, and designing new particle accelerators. To help ensure its 
missions are met, SC is bringing together advanced scientific computing 
and scientific research in an integrated program entitled ``Scientific 
Discovery through Advanced Computing.''

[[Page 358]]

The Opportunity and the Challenge

    Extraordinary advances in computing technology in the past decade 
have set the stage for a major advance in scientific computing. Within 
the next five to ten years, computers 1,000 times faster than today's 
computers will become available. These advances herald a new era in 
scientific computing. Using such computers, it will be possible to 
dramatically extend our exploration of the fundamental processes of 
nature (e.g., the structure of matter from the most elementary 
particles to the building blocks of life) as well as advance our 
ability to predict the behavior of a broad range of complex natural and 
engineered systems (e.g., the earth's climate or an automobile engine).
    To exploit this opportunity, these computing advances must be 
translated into corresponding increases in the performance of the 
scientific codes used to model physical, chemical, and biological 
systems. This is a daunting problem. Current advances in computing 
technology are being driven by market forces in the commercial sector, 
not by scientific computing. Harnessing commercial computing technology 
for scientific research poses problems unlike those encountered in 
previous supercomputers, in magnitude as well as in kind. As noted in 
the 1998 report \1\ from the NSF/DOE ``National Workshop on Advanced 
Scientific Computing'' and the 1999 report \2\ from the President's 
Information Technology Advisory Committee, this problem will only be 
solved by increased investments in computer software--in research and 
development of scientific simulation codes as well as on the 
mathematical and computing systems software that underlie these codes.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \1\ This workshop was sponsored by the National Science 
Foundation and the Department of Energy and hosted by the National 
Academy of Sciences on July 30-31, 1998. Copies of the report may be 
obtained from: http://www.er.doe.gov/production/octr/mics/index.html
    \2\ Copies of the PITAC report may be obtained from http://www.ccic.gov/ac/report/.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

Investment Plan of the Office of Science

    To meet the challenge posed by the new generation of terascale 
computers, SC will fund a set of coordinated investments as outlined in 
its long-range plan for scientific computing, Scientific Discovery 
through Advanced Computing,\3\ submitted to Congress on March 30, 2000. 
First, it will create a Scientific Computing Software Infrastructure 
that bridges the gap between the advanced computing technologies being 
developed by the computer industry and the scientific research programs 
sponsored by the Office of Science. Specifically, the SC effort 
proposes to:
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

    \3\ Copies of the SC computing plan, Scientific Discovery 
through Advanced Computing, can be downloaded from the SC web site 
at: http://www.sc.doe.gov/production/octr/index.html.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------

     Create a new generation of Scientific Simulation Codes 
that take full advantage of the extraordinary computing capabilities of 
terascale computers.
     Create the Mathematical and Computing Systems Software to 
enable the Scientific Simulation Codes to effectively and efficiently 
use terascale computers.
     Create a Collaboratory Software Environment to enable 
geographically separated scientists to effectively work together as a 
team and to facilitate remote access to both facilities and data.
    These activities are supported by a Scientific Computing Hardware 
Infrastructure that will be tailored to meet the needs of SC's research 
programs. The Hardware Infrastructure is robust, to provide the stable 
computing resources needed by the scientific applications; agile, to 
respond to innovative advances in computer technology that impact 
scientific computing; and flexible, to allow the most appropriate and 
economical resources to be used to solve each class of problems. 
Specifically, the SC proposes to support:
     A Flagship Computing Facility, the National Energy 
Research Scientific Computing Center (NERSC), to provide the robust, 
high-end computing resources needed by a broad range of scientific 
research programs.
     Topical Computing Facilities to provide computing 
resources tailored for specific scientific applications and to serve as 
the focal point for an application community as it strives to optimize 
its use of terascale computers.
     Experimental Computing Facilities to assess the promise of 
new computing technologies being developed by the computer industry for 
scientific applications.
    Both sets of investments will create exciting opportunities for 
teams of researchers from laboratories and universities to create new 
revolutionary computing capabilities for scientific discovery.

The Benefits

    The Scientific Computing Software Infrastructure, along with the 
upgrades to the hardware infrastructure, will enable laboratory and 
university researchers to solve the most challenging scientific 
problems faced by the Office of Science at a level of accuracy and 
detail never before achieved. These developments will have significant 
benefits to all of the government agencies that rely on high-
performance scientific computing to achieve their mission goals as well 
as to the U.S. high-performance computing industry.

Background: Advanced Computational Research in Fusion Science

    The Office of Fusion Energy Sciences supports a directed, basic 
research program to understand the elementary processes in plasmas and 
to use this knowledge to explore innovative approaches for confining 
fusion plasmas. Theoretical and computational plasma physics are 
critical to a fundamental understanding of plasmas, and much progress 
has been made during the past 25 years. The solicitation is focused on 
accelerating progress toward developing a quantitative understanding of 
nonlinear, non-equilibrium plasma systems.
    The scope and complexity of the proposed projects will require 
close collaboration among researchers from the computational and 
theoretical plasma physics, computer science and applied mathematics 
disciplines. Accordingly, this solicitation calls for the creation of 
topical centers as the organizational basis for a successful 
application. A topical center is a multi-institutional, multi-
disciplinary team that will:
     Create scientific simulation codes that take full 
advantage of terascale computers,
     Work closely with other SciDAC teams to ensure that the 
best available mathematical algorithms and computer science methods are 
employed, and
     Manage the work of the center in a way that will foster 
good communication and decision making (see section on Collaboration 
and Coordination below).
    Partnerships among universities, national laboratories, and 
industry are encouraged.
    Applications are being sought in the six topical areas listed 
below.
    1. Turbulence and transport: An understanding of plasma turbulence 
is a prerequisite to the development of first-principles models of 
anomalous transport in magnetically confined plasmas. The development 
of accurate models for plasma turbulence and the availability of more 
powerful, massively parallel computers will enable comparison with 
experimental data in greater detail than has been achieved to date. In 
particular, comparisons for realistic experimental conditions, 
including profile effects, finite beta,

[[Page 359]]

flow shear, and electron effects will lead to a better understanding of 
the relation between plasma turbulence and anomalous transport. The 
development of synthetic diagnostic tools and use of scientific 
visualization capabilities can facilitate this. Applications are 
solicited for the development of large-scale particle-in-cell (PIC) 
codes and continuum codes needed to understand turbulence and 
transport. The effort may include the development of a full-torus, 
continuum code. It is expected that the PIC codes will include the 
physics associated with kinetic electrons and electromagnetic fields, 
and that research will proceed on including neoclassical effects in 
continuum codes. An important element is understanding and reducing the 
differences between results obtained with PIC codes and continuum 
codes. Also there should be a focus on reducing code redundancy and on 
using object oriented techniques to facilitate code modernization and 
collaborative software development.
    2. Macroscopic equilibrium and stability: Computational methods 
based on sets of magneto-fluid equations for magnetized plasma that 
includes the effects of realistic geometry and boundary conditions will 
improve the efficiency, realism and accessibility of 3-D magneto-fluid 
models of fusion plasmas. The nearly collisionless nature of high 
temperature plasmas can be taken into account by supplementing the 
fluid equations with particle-based closures of the moment equations. 
Development of user-friendly codes can be utilized to pioneer new 
applications in plasma and fusion science. For example, magneto-
hydrodynamics should predict when sawtooth crashes and large-scale 
disruptions will occur. Applications are solicited for the development 
of large-scale 3-D magneto-fluid codes needed to understand large-scale 
phenomena in fusion plasmas. Test problems used to compare and validate 
computational models can also be employed to elucidate important 
physics. Goals include improving computational efficiency, integrating 
data management and visualization tools into the codes, addressing 
important programmatic problems in fusion science, and advancing 
understanding of fundamental plasma processes of wider scientific 
interest such as plasma relaxation and self-organization. Focus on 
utilizing modern computational techniques, such as object oriented 
programming, can facilitate code modernization and collaborative 
software development.
    3. Magnetic reconnection: Magnetic reconnection is the process in a 
magnetized plasma system that converts magnetic energy into high-speed 
flows and thermal energy. Because it is the basis of an important 
plasma transport mechanism, it impacts many plasma systems ranging from 
laboratory experiments to the Earth's magnetosphere, the solar corona 
and the astrophysical environment. Exploration of diamagnetic 
stabilization, both in the linear and nonlinear phase of reconnection, 
is essential to understand the onset of reconnection in fusion 
experiments. Applications are solicited for a coordinated effort that 
will focus on the critical scientific issues required to model and 
understand magnetic reconnection in the high temperature plasmas of 
fusion interest and the plasmas of interest to the space and 
astrophysical communities. The project may involve the development of 
new techniques for treating multi-scale phenomena such as adaptive mesh 
refinement and the dynamic embedding of kinetic models. It is 
anticipated that the use of slab geometry and a comparison of a variety 
of different models will allow identification of the essential physics 
required in the description of reconnection in high temperature 
plasmas. The development of adaptive mesh algorithms applied to the 
localized regions where the components of the magnetic field reverse, 
and utilized in multi-fluid codes may facilitate the modeling of high 
temperature plasma systems with real parameters. The computational 
effort may yield simulation results for direct comparison with 
laboratory experiments. By including the full geometry of laboratory 
experiments in the simulations, it may be possible to explain the 
observation that in a hot toroidal plasma, despite the absence of 
complete reconnection, the plasma energy from the entire core is 
expelled. Focus on utilizing modern computational techniques, such as 
object oriented programming, can facilitate code modernization and 
collaborative software development.
    4. Electromagnetic wave/particle interactions: Utilization of 
massively parallel processing will allow accurate predictive 
understanding of electromagnetic wave processes affecting heating, 
current drive, stability, and transport in fusion relevant plasmas. It 
is recognized that electromagnetic waves have the potential to 
penetrate high temperature plasmas and provide control of the various 
interacting processes at work in fusion plasmas. Wave-plasma 
interactions are described by large systems of partial differential 
equations of a complicated type that are neither elliptic nor 
hyperbolic. These systems of equations provide a challenging test bed 
for new iterative matrix inversion techniques. Applications are 
solicited for a coordinated effort to develop a mode conversion code 
that is self-consistently linked with antenna-wave coupling modules. 
This code should self-consistently include the plasma dielectric 
response due to wave-driven evolution of the particle distribution 
function on longer time scales. Massively parallel processor platforms 
are to be used to determine self-consistently phenomena that are 
important in the interaction between waves and plasma particles, for 
example, wave coupling, propagation, absorption, and wave-driven 
equilibrium evolution. There should be a focus on reducing code 
redundancy and on using object oriented techniques to facilitate code 
modernization and collaborative software development.
    5. Boundary layer effects in plasmas: The performance of tokamaks, 
and other toroidal magnetic devices, is dependent on the dynamics of 
the edge region, which is the region that connects the hot core plasma 
through the separatrix to the material surface of the first wall. The 
edge region affects a whole variety of scientific issues ranging from 
confinement of hot fusion plasma to plasma-wall interactions and the 
technology of the first-wall design. Advances in understanding the non-
linear edge plasma phenomena through development of appropriate 
modeling tools would be most beneficial. A major plasma science 
challenge results from the unique properties of edge plasmas. These 
unique properties include the widely varying space and time scales, the 
interplay between closed and open magnetic field lines, and physical 
processes that include atomic physics and both plasma-neutral and 
plasma-wall interactions. Applications are solicited for a coordinated 
research effort to utilize and develop tools that will aid in 
fundamental understanding of edge plasma turbulence and transport. 
Initial efforts may involve validation and verification of existing 
codes through in depth comparisons with one another, with existing edge 
databases, and with analytic theory. There should be a focus on 
reducing code redundancy and on using object oriented techniques to 
facilitate code modernization and collaborative software development. 
The resulting community based code should incorporate full geometry, 
macroscopic transport, kinetic effects, and plasma-neutral 
interactions. With the use of efficient parallel solvers and other

[[Page 360]]

advanced numerical techniques, well-resolved simulations of the edge 
plasma should result.
    6. Electromagnetic fields and beam dynamics in particle 
accelerators: The physics of intense ion beams needed for Inertial 
Fusion Energy is both rich and subtle, due to the kinetic and nonlinear 
nature of the system and the wide range in spatial and temporal scales 
involved. Effects associated with both instabilities and non-ideal 
processes must be understood. 3-D chamber calculations are required in 
order to provide a realistically complete model of the chamber 
environment. These calculations would allow exploration of various 
propagation modes. By employing multiple modes, it is possible to 
compare implicit electromagnetic methods, which can eliminate fast time 
scales not essential to the physics, and explicit electromagnetic 
methods. In the accelerator, the beam dynamics is nearly collisionless 
and Liouvillean, and as a result emittance growth primarily takes place 
through complicated distortions, driven by collective behaviors, 
imperfect applied fields, image fields from nearby conductors and 
inter-beam forces. With development of qualitatively improved tools it 
would be possible to establish much deeper understanding of these 
processes. Applications are solicited to develop a source-to-target 
simulation capability. This includes simulations of acceleration and 
confinement of the space-charge-dominated ion beams through the driver; 
electromagnetic and magneto-inductive simulations which describe the 
beam and fusion chamber environment, including multi-beam, 
neutralization, stripping, beam and plasma ionization processes, and 
return current effects; and simulations which can examine electron 
effects and collective modes in the driver and chamber. The code 
development may involve adoption of exiting codes to run on computers 
that use a hybrid of shared and distributed memory, production of new 
and improved numerical algorithms, e.g., averaging techniques that 
allow larger time-steps, and improved physics models. It is anticipated 
that modern scripting techniques for steering the code and advanced 
data visualization tools may be employed.

Collaboration and Coordination

    It is expected that all applications submitted in response to this 
notice will be for collaborative centers involving more than one 
institution. Applications submitted from different institutions, which 
are directed at a common research activity, may include a common 
technical description of the overall research project but must have a 
qualified principal investigator, who is responsible for the part of 
the effort at each institution, and separate face pages and budget 
pages for each institution. In addition, if the distinct scope of work 
proposed for each institution is not specified in the common technical 
description, it must be clearly stated in the individual proposals. 
Applicants should include cost sharing whenever feasible. Synergistic 
collaborations with researchers in federal laboratories and Federally 
Funded Research and Development Centers (FFRDCs), including the DOE 
National Laboratories are encouraged, though no funds will be provided 
to these organizations under this Notice. Further information on 
preparation of collaborative proposals is available in the Application 
Guide for the Office of Science Financial Assistance Program that is 
available via the Internet at: http://www.science.doe.gov/production/grants/Colab.html.
    Since each center will be developing new computational tools and 
physics models that could be useful to other centers, it is important 
that there be good communication between the different centers. Also, 
it is important to have some guidance on code capabilities and 
development priorities from the broader fusion, scientific and 
computational communities. To facilitate this process the Office of 
Fusion Energy Sciences has established a community governed Plasma 
Science Advanced Scientific Computation Institute. This institute will 
be responsible for organizing regular coordination meetings and annual 
progress reviews. It will also coordinate development of priorities for 
future work and ensure good communication between the fusion centers 
and the other SciDAC activities.

Preapplications

    Each potential applicant is strongly encouraged to submit a brief 
preapplication that consists of a two to three page narrative 
describing the proposed research, including research objectives and 
technical approach(s). Each preapplication should include a cover sheet 
with the title of the project, principal investigator, other senior 
personnel, institutions involved, and the name, telephone number, and 
e-mail address of the principal investigator. In addition, brief, one-
page vitae should be submitted for the principal investigator and other 
senior personnel involved in the proposed center. Preapplications will 
be evaluated to assess their programmatic relevance, and a response 
will be provided to the principal investigator within 14 days of 
receipt. However, notification of a successful preapplication is not an 
indication that an award will be made in response to a formal 
application.

Program Funding

    Approximately $1,700,000 of Fiscal Year 2001 funding will be 
available for grant awards in FY 2001. Additional funding for the 
proposed project may be available through the Office of Advanced 
Scientific Computing Research for closely related research in computer 
science and/or applied mathematics. Applications may request support 
for up to three years, with out-year support contingent on the 
availability of funds and satisfactory progress. To support multi-
disciplinary, multi-institutional efforts, funding levels of $0.6 
million to $1.2 million may be requested for the first year of the 
project, with higher funding levels possible in future years.
    As required by the SC grant application guide, applicants must 
submit their budgets using the Budget Page (DOE Form 4620.1) with one 
Budget Page for each year of requested funding. The requested funding 
for the proposed work in computer science and applied mathematics 
should be included with the other project costs on the Budget Page. 
However, applicants are also requested to list the proposed computer 
science and applied mathematics costs separately in an appendix, as the 
Office of Advanced Scientific Computing Research may support this part 
of the work (up to 20-25% of the total project cost). The Office of 
Fusion Energy Sciences expects to fund two or three centers, depending 
on the size of the awards.

Applications

    Applications will be subjected to scientific merit review (peer 
review) and will be evaluated against the following criteria listed in 
descending order of importance as codified in 10 CFR 605.10(d) 
(www.science.doe.gov/production/grants/605index.html):
    1. Scientific and/or technical merit of the project;
    2. Appropriateness of the proposed method or approach;
    3. Competency of the applicant's personnel and adequacy of the 
proposed resources;
    4. Reasonableness and appropriateness of the proposed budget.
    The evaluation of applications under item 1, Scientific and 
Technical Merit, will pay particular attention to:

[[Page 361]]

    (a) The importance of the proposed project to the mission of the 
Office of Fusion Energy Sciences;
    (b) The potential of the proposed project to advance the state-of-
the-art in computational modeling and simulation of plasma behavior;
    (c) The need for extraordinary computing resources to address 
problems of critical scientific importance to the fusion program and 
the demonstrated abilities of the applicants to use terascale 
computers; and
    (d) The likelihood that the models, algorithms, and methods, that 
result from this effort will have impact on science disciplines outside 
of fusion research.
    The evaluation under item 2, Appropriateness of the Proposed Method 
or Approach, will also consider the following elements related to 
Quality of Planning:
    (a) Quality of the plan for effective collaboration among members 
of the center;
    (b) Quality of plan for ensuring communication with other advanced 
computation efforts;
    (c) Viability of plan for verifying and validating the models 
developed, including close coupling with experiments for ultimate 
validation; and
    (d) Quality and clarity of proposed work schedule and deliverables.
    Note that external peer reviewers are selected with regard to both 
their scientific expertise and the absence of conflict-of-interest 
issues. Non-federal reviewers may be used, and submission of an 
application constitutes agreement that this is acceptable to the 
investigator(s) and the submitting institution.
    General information about development and submission of 
applications, eligibility, limitations, evaluations and selection 
processes, and other policies and procedures may be found in the 
Application Guide for the Office of Science (SC) Financial Assistance 
Program and in 10 CFR Part 605. Electronic access to SC's Financial 
Assistance Guide and required forms is made available via the Internet 
using the following Web site address: http://www.science.doe.gov/production/grants/grants.html.
    In addition, for this notice, project descriptions must be 25 pages 
or less, including tables and figures, but excluding attachments. The 
application must also contain an abstract or project summary, letters 
of intent from all non-funded collaborators, and short curriculum vitae 
of all senior personnel. On the SC grant Face Page (DOE Form 4650.2), 
in block 15, also provide the PI's phone number, FAX number, and e-mail 
address.

    The Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Number for this 
program is 81.049, and the solicitation control number is ERFAP 10 
CFR Part 605.

    Issued in Washington, DC on December 21, 2000.
Ralph H. De Lorenzo,
Acting Associate Director of Science for Resource Management.
[FR Doc. 01-78 Filed 1-2-01; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6450-01-P