What is the difference between implicit and explicit solvers?
There are two main methods of time integration: implicit and explicit. Implicit time integration is the “classical” method of FEA, where one or more matrices are generated that couple the entire structure during solution. Although rapidly solved for small problems, an implicit approach results in a rapid increase in both computation power and memory requirements as the number of elements in a model increases. An explicit analysis does not require the matrices, which results in significant saving in computational power and memory required for medium- to large-scale problems. It is ideal for compact 2D and 3D models spanning tens of wavelengths on each side, which is typical for ultrasound applications.
