CRPC-TR93536: "Error Analysis of Numerical Schemes for the 
Wave Equation in Heterogeneous Media."

Alain Sei, William Symes.


Abstract :
A family of finite difference schemes for the acoustic wave 
equation in heterogeneous media is introduced. 
The precision and computational cost are analyzed in two 
cases. First, a two layered medium is considered. The order 
of convergence at the interface is derived for each scheme. 
Given an a priori accuracy on the solution, the computational 
cost is studied as a function of the order of accuracy of the 
finite difference scheme. It is demonstrated that this 
function has a minimum. The previous results are extended to 
the case of random media by a numerical study. Similar 
conclusions about precision and cost are found.