Numerical solution of the \(1+2\) dimensional Fisher's equation by finite elements and the Galerkin method (Q1368490)

The paper is concerned with the finite element method for the Fisher equation -- a model second-order parabolic equation in which the mechanisms of linear diffusion and of logistic growth are combined. This model is used as mathematical simulation of some ecological problems. A Galerkin finite element method in two space dimensions is presented providing a system of ordinary differential equations with respect to the time variable. By using a special type of form functions, the off-diagonal elements of the matrix of this system become negligibly small, so the multiplication with the inverse of this matrix will be unnecessary. This leads the resulting algorithm to be simpler and faster with less memory requirements. Practical applications of the method are illustrated by numerical results of simulation of a simple reef growth model.