Run Multiphysics Simulations from MATLAB^®

LiveLink™ for MATLAB^® provides commands in the MATLAB^® scripting language, sent from MATLAB^® to COMSOL Multiphysics^®, that initiate simulations in COMSOL Multiphysics^®. This can be used for automating modeling steps as well as integrating COMSOL Multiphysics^® models with calculations performed in MATLAB^®. LiveLink™ for MATLAB^® uses the COMSOL application programming interface (API), which has all the necessary functions and methods for implementing models from scratch or updating settings in existing models.

All aspects of COMSOL Multiphysics^® modeling can be controlled using MATLAB^® through the API, which is tightly integrated with the MATLAB^® environment. LiveLink™ for MATLAB^® allows you to perform geometry and mesh operations, change physics settings, run parametric studies, control solvers, and postprocess the results. Results can be extracted as numerical data and MATLAB^® figures.

Utility Tools for Managing Models from MATLAB^®

All COMSOL^® model settings are available from the command line in MATLAB^®. To help you get acquainted with the model data structure and the model settings, LiveLink™ for MATLAB^® comes with two utility tools for navigating and searching the model contents: the Model Navigator and Model Search tools.

The Model Navigator provides an overview of the model structure in a model tree together with the model settings and the commands that can be executed for each part of the model. Using this tool, you can easily extract commands for setting and finding model properties to use in your own scripts.

The Model Search tool will search the COMSOL Multiphysics^® model from the MATLAB^® interface, helping you to find expressions and variables used in a model. Several filters and search settings are provided to narrow your search.

Furthermore, you can access a model from MATLAB^® and the COMSOL Desktop^® simultaneously. This way, you can use the workflow that is best suited for the task at hand. You may prefer to perform some tasks using the command line and scripting, while other tasks may be more convenient to perform using the COMSOL Multiphysics^® user interface.

Manage and Create Geometry Models and Meshes from MATLAB^®

Running COMSOL Multiphysics^® from MATLAB^® gives you a lot of flexibility when handling geometry models and meshes. From MATLAB^® programs and the MATLAB^® command-line interface, you can:

• Generate geometry objects with inputs from MATLAB^®
• Import and export CAD models in a range of industry-leading file formats¹
• Run simulations based on imported CAD models
• Create, import, and export surfaces on the STL, 3MF, and PLY file formats
• Plot geometry objects in MATLAB^® figures
• Obtain geometry information for points, edges, surfaces, and domains, e.g., for adjacency, curvature, distances, etc.
• Convert an image to a 2D geometry
• Generate meshes
• Plot meshes in MATLAB^® figures
• Retrieve mesh information such as mesh statistics and other mesh data
• Import and export mesh data

Call MATLAB^® Functions from the COMSOL Desktop^®

LiveLink™ for MATLAB^® provides a direct connection to MATLAB^® while running COMSOL Multiphysics^®. You can call MATLAB^® functions from the COMSOL Multiphysics^® user interface (UI) to define material properties, boundary conditions, and more. These MATLAB^® functions can be evaluated while the model is solving. Additionally, a COMSOL simulation app can contain MATLAB^® calls, in which case MATLAB^® will automatically start when called during runtime.

Integrate with Your Existing MATLAB^® Programs

For MATLAB^® users, COMSOL Multiphysics^® simulations can easily be integrated into existing code bases. You can save a model that has been set up in the COMSOL Multiphysics^® user interface to an M-file. This M-file then contains COMSOL^® API calls, in MATLAB^® syntax, for running COMSOL Multiphysics^® functionality. This provides a quick and convenient way of automatically generating COMSOL^® modeling code, which can be used as a starting point for further integration into your MATLAB^® programs.

Using the automatic code generation tools provides a quick way to learn the COMSOL^® API for MATLAB^®, which is included in LiveLink™ for MATLAB^®. The COMSOL^® API is easy to learn and has an intuitive structure similar to the steps you use when setting up models in the COMSOL Multiphysics^® user interface using the Model Builder.

Existing code that is based on MATLAB^® toolboxes or your own code integrates easily with COMSOL Multiphysics^® simulations. You can even call COMSOL Multiphysics^® from user interfaces that have been created using MATLAB^®. This makes it possible to, for example, use MATLAB^® for preprocessing and postprocessing and COMSOL Multiphysics^® for structural, fluid, electromagnetics, or other physics or multiphysics modeling. Simulations can then be carried out using a mix of programs and models created with MATLAB^®, COMSOL Multiphysics^®, and even other tools.

Generate Plots in MATLAB^® and Extract Data from COMSOL Multiphysics^®

All COMSOL Multiphysics^® plots can be recreated in MATLAB^®. All plot types can be generated as regular MATLAB^® plots and can be saved or exported and manipulated like any other MATLAB^® plot.

From your MATLAB^® programs, you can evaluate COMSOL Multiphysics^® expressions either locally at a few points or for larger portions of a model, such as along the edges, on surfaces, or in volumes. You can access the raw solution data or processed data based on arbitrary expressions, including maximum, minimum, average, and integral values.

The COMSOL Multiphysics^® unit handling is fully supported for any type of extracted data, which means that you can, for example, use unit handling in your own programs for unit conversion.

Any numerical data from COMSOL Multiphysics^® simulations can be retrieved and assigned to MATLAB^® variables for further analysis. Low-level information that is directly related to mesh and shape function data can be extracted, as well as sensitivities and time and spatial derivatives.