Magnetic Field Simulator

GIF
2D simulation of gaussian pulse source
GIF
3D simulation of gaussian pulse source
GIF
2 positive charges (red) and 1 negative charge (blue) in EM field.
GIF
2 positive charges (red) and 1 negative charge (blue) in EM field (longer simulation).

Inspiration

Simulating the interaction of magnetic fields of charged particles in a EM field.

What it does

We discretize Maxwell's equations using the Yee algorithm (Finite-Difference Time-Domain) with Dirichlet boundary conditions. Then, we iteratively solved for the magnetic field at each point in our domain and determined the interaction with the charged particles and the background gaussian pulse. We wrote the code for 2D and 3D simulations, but only the 2D version is shown as the 3D takes to run.

How we built it

We used python and plotted the field evolution using matplotlib in 2D and 3D domains. The frames are saved individually and are stitched together using imageio.

Challenges we ran into

Animating figures with matplotlib. We were also having problems with the dealing the EM field at the location of the point particle. Simulations of collisions were difficult and we were unable to include in our final version.

Accomplishments that we're proud of

Animating figures with matplotlib.

What we learned

We learned about FDTD method and how to make gifs using plots generated from matplotlib.

What's next for Magnetic Field Simulator

There are still some issues with the interaction of particles. We will need to code the physics to account for the collisions of particles. We can also develop a list of intrinsic properties of particles, and try to simulate Zeeman effects and other field interactions/couplings.