High-resolution scheme

High-resolution schemes are used in the numerical solution of partial differential equations where high accuracy is required in the presence of shocks or discontinuities. They have the following properties:

General methods are often not adequate for accurate resolution of steep gradient phenomena; they usually introduce non-physical effects such as smearing of the solution or spurious oscillations. Since publication of Godunov's order barrier theorem, which proved that linear methods cannot provide non-oscillatory solutions higher than first order (Godunov-1954, Godunov-1959), these difficulties have attracted a lot of attention and a number of techniques have been developed that largely overcome these problems. To avoid spurious or non-physical oscillations where shocks are present, schemes that exhibit a Total Variation Diminishing (TVD) characteristic are especially attractive.