Symmetry boundary conditions

A simple approach to energy conserving boundary conditions using exact symmetries is described which is especially useful for numerical simulations using the finite difference method. Each field in the simulation is normally either symmetric (even) or antisymmetric (odd) with respect to the simulation boundary. Another possible boundary condition is an antisymmetric perturbation about a nonzero value. One of the most powerful aspects of this approach is that it can be easily implemented in curvilinear coordinates by making the scale factors of the coordinate transformation symmetric about the boundaries. The method is demonstrated for magnetohydrodynamics (MHD), reduced MHD, and a hybrid code with particle ions and fluid electrons. These boundary conditions yield exact energy conservation in the limit of infinite time and space resolution. Also discussed is the interpretation that the particle charge reverses sign at a conducting boundary with boundary normal perpendicular to the background magnetic field.