(Sm)/sup 2/: sparse matrix solving machine

In analyzing electronic circuits, it is usually necessary to solve simultaneous linear equations which provide with a sparse coefficient matrix. In order to treat these problems effectively, the authors propose a dedicated parallel machine called sparse matrix solving machine, or (sm)/sup 2/ for short. (Sm)/sup 2/ is composed of multiple clusters, each consisting of multiple processing units (PUs) attached to a sophisticated shared memory which enables any PUs to read data from memory simultaneously without conflict. The structure of the cluster is organized so as to make the best use of the neighboring effects involved in the problems. The characteristics of the problems to be solved and the behavior of the PUs is discussed, and the optimum system configuration for (sm)/sup 2/ is shown and its effectiveness is justified through behavior analysis and simulations. 8 references.