When high throughput and utilization of fabric at close-to-the-link capacity are most needed in a cluster, Ethernet is a potential candidate, rivaling traditional HPC interconnects. The distributed real-time data acquisition at particle physics experiments presents an interesting use case. This article evaluates possible Ethernet-based solutions for aggregating data from hundreds of data sources at a throughput of dozens of Tb/s. This leads us to many-to-one data exchanges where we strive for a cost-optimized setup sustaining more than 80 % of the theoretical link-load. We investigate possible Ethernet-based traffic patterns to handle data acquisition on large multi-source apparatuses. Different numbers of producers and receivers and different link speeds are allowed in a large-scale network. Performance tests were conducted using customized benchmarks and evaluation test benches. The article presents tested scenarios and problems encountered in practice. We describe how our findings influenced the design of a large production system at CERN. We also present relevant general conclusions for a broader range of applications of Ethernet in HPC.

Summary This paper presents feasibility studies in utilizing graphics processing units (GPUs) as high‐performance computing hardware with front‐end electronics in high‐scale magnetic confinement thermal fusion experiments. The objective of the research is to provide scalable, high‐throughput, and low‐latency measurements for the runtime tokamak metallic impurities X‐ray diagnostic for the Tungsten Environment in Steady‐State Tokamak (WEST) reactor. The heterogeneous system of front‐end with field‐programmable gate arrays and the back‐end server was introduced to decompose workloads efficiently. It allows the comprehensive evaluation of CPUs and accelerators. In particular, a novel implementation of the back‐end algorithm for GPU with the performance analysis are presented.

The article presents results of the novel approach of combining high-performance and parallel computing solutions with front-end electronics in the development of scalable specialized soft X-rays measurement tool for high-scale plasma physics experiments with thermal fusion devices. Regarding the need for an easily-modifiable advanced diagnostics of tokamak hot plasma content, the heterogeneous system consisting of FPGAs and the PC server was introduced. The objective is to provide data quality monitoring and evaluation mechanisms along with an algorithm benchmarking tool for fast, low-latency measurements of soft X-rays emitted by hot tokamak plasma. The article describes a method of the development of the computation pipeline on the server side. The novel parallel algorithms and results are discussed. This brand new approach is targeted to adapt a HPC techniques in new areas of science, where comprehensive low-latency measurements and instrumentation are increasingly desired. The presented solution is deployed in the operational tokamak WEST (Tungsten Environment in Steady-State Tokamak) in collaboration with French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission (CEA), Cadarache, France.