Fujitsu today announced that it has received an order for a new supercomputer from the Institute for Solid State Physics (ISSP) at The University of Tokyo. The new system is scheduled to begin operations next spring.
The new system, a Fujitsu PRIMEHPC FX10 supercomputer, will comprise four racks, with a total of 384 nodes for a theoretical computational performance of 90.8 teraflops(1). The system will primarily be used to support nationwide research conducted collaboratively by solid state science researchers, in addition to being employed in research and applications development for the second field of the K computer's(2) strategic programme, namely, "New Materials and Energy Creation".
Researchers in this field aim to further the development of new materials and to produce key technologies that lead to the creation of new energy, while conducting R&D that will help bring about a sustainable society. The new system is expected to spur dramatic advances in the field of solid state sciences research and contribute to the development of high-performance devices, high-efficiency fuel cells and new drugs.
Background to the deployment of the new system
Since its establishment in 1957, ISSP has served as Japan's central institution for solid state sciences research aimed at understanding the different natures of materials, from their atomic composition to the behaviour of electrons. Moreover, as the representative institute for the second field of the K computer's strategic programme, "New Materials and Energy Creation", ISSP has led the establishment of the Computational Materials Science Initiative (CMSI), which is centred on the Institute for Molecular Science at the National Institute of Natural Sciences, the Institute for Materials Research, at Tohoku University, and 11 other participating institutions. CMSI actively promotes research in the field of computational materials science(3).
To facilitate the development of applications for use in the K computer's strategic programme and other areas, ISSP selected the Fujitsu PRIMEHPC FX10 supercomputer, which is highly compatible with the K computer, having the latest ultra-parallel computing technologies. As a result, researchers will be able to develop and fine-tune programmes in an even more practical manner, thereby helping to facilitate breakthrough achievements in solid state science research while training the next generation of researchers who will lead the field of computational materials science.
Overview of the new system
Combining high performance, scalability and reliability with superior energy efficiency, PRIMEHPC FX10 further enhances the Fujitsu technology used in the K computer.
The new system will use a PRIMEHPC FX10 supercomputer comprising four racks and 384 nodes, thereby achieving a total theoretical computational performance of 90.8 teraflops. For its HPC middleware, the system will employ Technical Computing Suite(4) for peta-scale systems, together with 12 PRIMERGY series servers as login nodes and management servers. ETERNUS storage systems, combined for a total capacity of 126.9 terabytes, will be deployed for storage. The file system will be constructed using the high-capacity, high-performance and highly reliable FEFS(5) distributed file system.
PRIMEHPC FX10 received high acclaim from ISSP for its high performance and reliability, as well as its superior energy efficiency that can keep up with today's energy requirements, and the ultra-high performance and usability of FEFS.
Future prospects
Using the new system, ISSP will strive to train researchers who can develop applications for the K computer, together with accelerating research activities conducted on the K computer. This, in turn, is expected to lead to dramatic advances in solid state science and contribute to the development of high-performance devices, high-efficiency fuel cells and new drugs.
Please click here to see the main configuration of the new supercomputer system.
Comment from Osamu Sugino, Ph.D., Associate Professor, ISSP, The University of Tokyo:
"It is of great significance that the new system, which is highly compatible with the K computer, will be deployed at ISSP to assist in research and application development. We expect the system will be of assistance in furthering the research of not only those involved in the strategic programme, but the larger solid state science community as well. Moreover, we anticipate it will be of great use, from a long-term perspective, in our software development and educational initiatives."
Glossary and notes:
1. Teraflops:
A trillion floating-point operations per second.
2. K computer:
A supercomputer developed by RIKEN and Fujitsu that achieved the world's top-ranked performance on the TOP500 list announced in June and November 2011.
3. Computational materials science:
Established as a new approach for connecting theory with experimentation, a field of materials science that employs simulations, statistics and other computational tools.
4. Technical Computing Suite:
Fujitsu-produced HPC middleware, which includes system management and job operation management functions, as well as a compiler and library, resulting in high-execution performance for massively parallel applications.
5. FEFS:
FEFS originates from Fujitsu Exabyte File System. A high-performance distributed file system that enables sharing across 100 000 nodes.
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Fujitsu is the leading Japanese information and communication technology (ICT) company offering a full range of technology products, solutions and services. Over 170 000 Fujitsu people support customers in more than 100 countries. It uses its experience and the power of ICT to shape the future of society with its customers. Fujitsu (TSE: 6702) reported consolidated revenues of yen4.5 trillion ($54 billion) for the fiscal year ended 31 March 2012. For more information, please see http://www.fujitsu.com.
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