Scalable implicit methods for reaction-diffusion equations in two and three space dimensions

This paper describes the implementation of a solver for systems of semi-linear parabolic partial differential equations in two and three space dimensions. The solver is based on a parallel implementation of a non-linear Alternating Direction Implicit (ADI) scheme which uses a Cartesian grid in space and an implicit time-stepping algorithm. Various reordering strategies for the linearized equations are used to reduce the stride and improve the overall effectiveness of the parallel implementation. We have successfully used this solver for large-scale reaction-diffusion problems in computational biology and medicine in which the desired solution is a traveling wave that may contain rapid transitions. A number of examples that illustrate the efficiency and accuracy of the method are given here; the theoretical analysis will be presented.