Relativistic MHD and black hole excision: Formulation and initial tests

A new algorithm for solving the general relativistic MHD equations is described in this paper. We design our scheme to incorporate black hole excision with smooth boundaries, and to simplify solving the combined Einstein and MHD equations with AMR. The fluid equations are solved using a finite difference Convex ENO method. Excision is implemented using overlapping grids. Elliptic and hyperbolic divergence cleaning techniques allow for maximum flexibility in choosing coordinate systems, and we compare both methods for a standard problem. Numerical results of standard test problems are presented in two-dimensional flat space using excision, overlapping grids, and elliptic and hyperbolic divergence cleaning. PACS numbers: 04.25.Dm, 95.30.Qd,04.20.Dw,02.70.Bf Submitted to: Class. Quantum Grav.