General PDEs
You can use Partial Differential Equation Toolbox™ to solve linear and nonlinear second-order PDEs for stationary, time-dependent, and eigenvalue problems that occur in common applications in engineering and science.
A typical workflow for solving a general PDE or a system of PDEs includes the following steps:
Convert PDEs to the form required by Partial Differential Equation Toolbox.
Create a PDE model container specifying the number of equations in your model.
Defining 2-D or 3-D geometry and mesh it using triangular and tetrahedral elements with linear or quadratic basis functions.
Specify the coefficients, boundary and initial conditions. Use function handles to specify non-constant values.
Solve and plot the results at nodal locations or interpolate them to custom locations.
Functions
Objects
PDEModel | PDE model object |
StationaryResults | Time-independent PDE solution and derived quantities |
TimeDependentResults | Time-dependent PDE solution and derived quantities |
EigenResults | PDE eigenvalue solution and derived quantities |
Properties
| BoundaryCondition Properties | Boundary condition for PDE model |
| CoefficientAssignment Properties | Coefficient assignments |
| GeometricInitialConditions Properties | Initial conditions over a region or region boundary |
| NodalInitialConditions Properties | Initial conditions at mesh nodes |
| PDESolverOptions Properties | Algorithm options for solvers |
Topics
PDE Problem Setup
Solve Problems Using PDEModel Objects
Workflow describing how to set up and solve PDE problems using Partial Differential Equation Toolbox.
Set Dirichlet and Neumann conditions for scalar PDEs and systems of PDEs. Use functions when you cannot express your boundary conditions by constant input arguments.
- Solve PDEs with Constant Boundary Conditions
- Solve PDEs with Nonconstant Boundary Conditions
- No Boundary Conditions Between Subdomains
- View, Edit, and Delete Boundary Conditions
- Identify Boundary Labels
f Coefficient for specifyCoefficients
Specify the coefficient f in the equation.
- c Coefficient for specifyCoefficients
- m, d, or a Coefficient for specifyCoefficients
- View, Edit, and Delete PDE Coefficients
Set initial conditions for time-dependent problems or initial guess for nonlinear stationary problems.
Solutions and Their Gradients
Solution and Gradient Plots with pdeplot and pdeplot3D
Plot 2-D and 3-D PDE solutions and their gradients using
pdeplot and pdeplot3D.
2-D Solution and Gradient Plots with MATLAB® Functions
Plot 2-D PDE solutions and their gradients using surf,
mesh, quiver, and other MATLAB® functions.
3-D Solution and Gradient Plots with MATLAB® Functions
Plot 3-D PDE solutions, their gradients, and streamlines using
surf, contourslice,
quiver, and other MATLAB functions.
Dimensions of Solutions, Gradients, and Fluxes
Dimensions of stationary, time-dependent, and eigenvalue results at mesh nodes and arbitrary locations.
Eigenvalue Problems
Eigenvalues and Eigenmodes of Square
Find the eigenvalues and eigenmodes of a square domain.
Eigenvalues and Eigenmodes of L-Shaped Membrane
Use command-line functions to find the eigenvalues and the corresponding eigenmodes of an L-shaped membrane.
Finite Element Method and Partial Differential Equations
Equations You Can Solve Using PDE Toolbox
Types of scalar PDEs and systems of PDEs that you can solve using Partial Differential Equation Toolbox.
Put Equations in Divergence Form
Transform PDEs to the form required by Partial Differential Equation Toolbox.
Description of the use of the finite element method to approximate a PDE solution using a piecewise linear function.