New supercomputer cluster at FAU – one of the fastest and greenest in the world
Fast and green
Supercomputers Alex and Fritz at the Erlangen National High-Performance Computing Center (NHR @ FAU) are among the world’s fastest (TOP500) and most energy-efficient systems (Green500) in current rankings. Alex secured 184th place and Fritz achieved 323rd place in the TOP500.
The dynamic duo are part of a parallel cluster that consists of two modules: Alex is equipped with powerful graphics cards and abundant local storage, and Fritz has extremely high computing power. The cluster was designed to best meet the needs of FAU researchers and scientists throughout Germany in the field of atomistic simulation.
It is particularly impressive that both modules qualified separately as not all resources evaluated in the ranking were considered for both computers.
Alex reached 16th place in the Green500 ranking
Alex’s position in 16th place on the Green500 list, which ranks the TOP500 supercomputers based on their energy efficiency is particularly satisfying. The NHR@FAU system performed the best in Germany and ranks eighth in Europe. “We are very pleased that together with MEGWARE and inspur we have succeeded in designing, installing and configuring a system that is at the forefront of energy efficiency,” emphasizes Prof. Gerhard Wellein, Director of NHR@FAU.
Research already benefiting from using the new system includes molecular dynamics simulations in the field of mRNA vaccine research, studies on the mode of action of enzymes in DNA repair, and applications in machine learning, such as gesture recognition.
A detailed report, which includes the technical specification of the supercomputers, is available here: https://hpc.fau.de/2022/06/01/a-new-era-for-high-performance-computing-at-erlangen/
NHR@FAU – Partner in research
The Center for National High Performance Computing Erlangen (NHR@FAU) provides High Performance Computing (HPC) facilities at FAU and also offers operational and consulting expertise for HPC systems in the entire region. The NHR@FAU is one of a total of nine national centers for high-performance computing at German universities. NHR centers are funded by the federal government and the states from 2021 to 2030. The use of computing facilities and the consulting expertise of the centers is open to researchers at German universities through an application procedure.
Further information
Prof. Dr. Gerhard Wellein