Utilizing Hierarchical Clusters in the Design of Effective and Efficient Parallel Simulations of 2-D and 3-D Ising Spin Models

In this work, we design parallel Monte Carlo algorithms for the Ising spin model on a hierarchical cluster. A hierarchical cluster can be considered as a cluster of homogeneous nodes which are partitioned into multiple supernodes such that communication across homogenous clusters is represented by a supernode topological network. We consider different data layouts and provide equations for choosing the best data layout under such a network paradigm. We show that the data layouts designed for a homogeneous cluster will not yield results as good as layouts designed for a hierarchical cluster. We derive theoretical results on the performance of the algorithms on a modified version of the LogP model that represents such tiered networking, and present simulation results to analyze the utility of the theoretical design and analysis. Furthermore, we consider the 3-D Ising model and design parallel algorithms for sweep spin selection on both homogeneous and hierarchical clusters. We also discuss the simulation of hierarchical clusters on a homogeneous set of machines, and the efficient implementation of the parallel Ising model on such clusters.