Podcast: Supercomputing Better Semiconductors for Solar Energy

Researchers are using XSEDE supercomputers to develop better semiconductors for solar engery. “Dr. Levine models the behavior caused by defects in materials, such as doping bulk silicon to transform it into semiconductors in transistors, LEDs, and solar cells. Levine and his team have used over 975,000 compute hours on the Maverick supercomputer, a dedicated visualization and data analysis resource architected with 132 NVIDIA Tesla K40 “Atlas” GPUs for remote visualization and GPU computing to the national community.”

Podcast: Solar-Powered Hikari Supercomputer at TACC Demonstrates HVDC Efficiencies

Engineers of the Hikari HVDC power feeding system predict it will save 15 percent compared to conventional systems. “The 380 volt design reduces the number of power conversions when compared to AC voltage systems,” said James Stark, director of Engineering and Construction at the Electronic Environments Corporation (EEC), a Division of NTT FACILITIES. “What’s interesting about that,” Stark added, “is the computers themselves – the supercomputer, the blade servers, cooling units, and lighting – are really all designed to run on DC voltage. By supplying 380 volts DC to Hikari instead of having an AC supply with conversion steps, it just makes a lot more sense. That’s really the largest technical innovation.”

NEDO in Japan Funds Solar Research at TACC

Thanks to $13 Million in research funding from NEDO in Japan, the University of Texas at Austin will begin using alternative energy sources to power some of its HPC Clusters.