Accelerating Linear System Solutions Using Randomization Techniques

We illustrate how linear algebra calculations can be enhanced by statistical techniques in the case of a square linear system Ax = b. We study a random transformation of A that enables us to avoid pivoting and then to reduce the amount of communication. Numerical experiments show that this randomization can be performed at a very affordable computational price while providing us with a satisfying accuracy when compared to partial pivoting. This random transformation called Partial Random Butterfly Transformation (PRBT) is optimized in terms of data storage and flops count. We propose a solver where PRBT and the LU factorization with no pivoting take advantage of the current hybrid multicore/GPU machines and we compare its Gflop/s performance with a solver implemented in a current parallel library.