// $Id$
//==============================================================================
//!
//! \file IFEM.dox
//!
//! \date Jan 12 2010
//!
//! \author Knut Morten Okstad / SINTEF
//!
//! \brief File containing the Main Page of the spline FEM documentation.
//!
//==============================================================================

/*! \mainpage Toolbox for Isogeometric Finite Element analysis

\author Knut Morten Okstad, Sintef ICT, Trondheim

\section intro Introduction

IFEM is an object-oriented toolbox for implementing isogeometric finite element
solvers for linear and nonlinear partial differential equations.
The toolbox is developed through the ICADA project at SINTEF ICT, Trondheim.
The purpose of this code is to serve as a common base for isogeometric
PDE-simulators, using splines and NURBS as basis functions in the finite element
formulations. The toolbox contains methods for doing linear and non-linear,
stationary and dynamic time-domain analyses, as well as eigenvalue analyses.

\section overview Module overview

The simulation toolbox is organized into a set of modules,
organized as class hierarchies implemented in the C++ language.
The top-level driver is organized in the class SIMbase and its sub-classes.
These classes have methods for reading model data from an input file,
to assemble the linearized algebraic system of equations resulting from the
finite element discretization, and to solve that system.
It also contains methods for writing a VTF-file with results.
Problem-specific drivers and main programs are found in the sub-folder Apps.

The core of the finite element implementation is contained in the class
ASMbase and its sub-classes, which have methods for evaluating the element
matrices involved and assembling them into the system matrices.
There is typically one ASMbase object for each spline patch in the model.

The physical problem-dependent data and methods is accessed via an abstract
interface class, Integrand, through which the application programmer can
implement the weak form of the underlying finite element problem.

The actual splines evaluation is performed through the GoTools library, which is
not part of the current package. In addition, this code depends on the ARPACK,
LAPACK and BLAS libraries. Optionally, the SAMG algebraic multi-grid solver and
the SuperLU direct solver (public domain http://crd.lbl.gov/~xiaoye/SuperLU)
may be included. The Ceetron VTFAPI library may also be included for direct
export of simulations results to GLview VTF-files.
*/