Abstract
This paper describes the implementation of a fast N-body algorithm for the study of multi-lament vortex simulations. The simulations involve distributions that are irregular and time-varying. We adapt our programming framework which was earlier used to develop high-performance implementations of the Barnes-Hut and Greengard-Rokhlin algorithms for gravitational elds. We describe how the additional subtleties involved in vortex lament simulations are accommodated eciently within the framework. We describe the ongoing experimental studies and report preliminary results with simulations of one million particles on the 128-node Connection Machine CM-5. The implementation sustains a rate of almost 30% of the peak machine rate. These simulations are more than an order of magnitude larger in size than previously studied using direct methods. We expect that the use of the fast algorithm will allow us to study the generation of small scales in the vortex collapse and reconnection problem with adequate resolution.