A Structure-Preserving Decorated Particle Method for the Vlasov-Poisson System

Fuente: arXiv
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Main Authors: Quashie, Mandela B., Burby, J. W., Christlieb, Andrew J., Tang, Qi
Format: Preprint
Published: 2026
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author Quashie, Mandela B.
Burby, J. W.
Christlieb, Andrew J.
Tang, Qi
author_facet Quashie, Mandela B.
Burby, J. W.
Christlieb, Andrew J.
Tang, Qi
contents We revisit the Scovel-Weinstein framework (Scovel & Weinstein, CPAM 1994) for reducing the Vlasov-Poisson system while preserving its Hamiltonian structure. Standard particle-in-cell (PIC) algorithms approximate the distribution function by macro-particles with position and velocity. In contrast, Scovel-Weinstein decorated particles involve additional shape degrees of freedom, while maintaining a finite-dimensional reduction with Hamiltonian structure inherited from the continuum model. Although the original work established this structure three decades ago, its computational potential has remained largely unexplored. We present a practical implementation of the Scovel-Weinstein model and compare it with a standard PIC algorithm. Numerical experiments demonstrate that macro-particles in standard PIC can be replaced by far fewer decorated particles while retaining comparable accuracy. This decorated particle approach offers a new structure-preserving paradigm for kinetic plasma simulation.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2605_21794
institution arXiv
publishDate 2026
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle A Structure-Preserving Decorated Particle Method for the Vlasov-Poisson System
Quashie, Mandela B.
Burby, J. W.
Christlieb, Andrew J.
Tang, Qi
Numerical Analysis
Plasma Physics
65M75, 70H05, 70G65
We revisit the Scovel-Weinstein framework (Scovel & Weinstein, CPAM 1994) for reducing the Vlasov-Poisson system while preserving its Hamiltonian structure. Standard particle-in-cell (PIC) algorithms approximate the distribution function by macro-particles with position and velocity. In contrast, Scovel-Weinstein decorated particles involve additional shape degrees of freedom, while maintaining a finite-dimensional reduction with Hamiltonian structure inherited from the continuum model. Although the original work established this structure three decades ago, its computational potential has remained largely unexplored. We present a practical implementation of the Scovel-Weinstein model and compare it with a standard PIC algorithm. Numerical experiments demonstrate that macro-particles in standard PIC can be replaced by far fewer decorated particles while retaining comparable accuracy. This decorated particle approach offers a new structure-preserving paradigm for kinetic plasma simulation.
title A Structure-Preserving Decorated Particle Method for the Vlasov-Poisson System
topic Numerical Analysis
Plasma Physics
65M75, 70H05, 70G65
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2605.21794