SmoothViz: Visualization of Smoothed Particle Hydrodynamics Simulation Data

PhD position

Application deadline: until filled.

Start: June 1, 2008.

Funding: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft.

Project description:

Smoothed Particle Hydrodynamics (SPH) simulations are widely been used in the field of astrophysics due to their natural adaptivity and robustness. Particle can move freely within a 3D space and reside where high accuracy is required. To account for the adaptivity during visualization, visualization methods are to be developed that take as input a large set of particles with scalar or vector-valued data values assigned to them and directly display the represented features. Scalar fields shall be visualized using surface extractions based on isocontouring or level set computations. Point-based surface rendering mechanisms need to be developed to display the extracted surfaces. Time coherency needs to be exploited to efficiently deal with time-varying data. Vector fields shall be visualized using geometric flow visualization approaches. All approaches shall be integrated into an operating system for visual exploration of SPH data.

Applicants should have a solid background in computer science (or a related area) and basic knowledge in visualization and computer graphics. Further expertise in scientific visualization is desired. Knowledge about astrophysics ans/or particle-based simulations would further strengthen the application.