poly_rust: a domain-specific language for polytopal methods with a Rust interpreter

Abstract

In this article we introduce poly_rust, a new software library that implements a domain-specific language for polytopal methods. Polytopal methods support meshes much more general than those on which traditional finite element methods are built. This can be achieved by dropping global function spaces and reconstructing the relevant operators directly from the degrees of freedom through the solution of local variational problems. Reconstructions are then used in place of shape functions in the global variational formulation. poly_rust provides facilities for expressing a wide variety of polytopal methods using a syntax that closely resembles their mathematical formulation. We review here the main aspects of the library from the perspective of a basic user and provide numerical examples spanning several problems and methods.