ADAPTIVE COMPUTATION OF GRAVITATIONAL-WAVES FROM BLACK-HOLE INTERACTIONS - ART. NO. 084002

We construct a class of linear partial differential equations describi ng general perturbations of non-rotating black holes in 3D Cartesian c oordinates. In contrast with the usual approach, a single equation tre ats all radiative l-m modes simultaneously, allowing the study of wave perturbations of black holes with arbitrary 3D structure, as would be present when studying the full set of nonlinear Einstein equations de scribing a perturbed black hole. This class of equations forms an exce llent testbed to explore the computational issues of simulating black spacetimes using a three dimensional adaptive mesh refinement code. Us ing this code, we present results from the first fully resolved 3D sol ution of the equations describing perturbed black holes. We discuss bo th fixed and adaptive mesh refinement, refinement criteria, and the co mputational savings provided by adaptive techniques in 3D for such mod el problems of distorted black holes. [S0556-2821(98)01214-4].