Finite element approximation of non-Markovian random fields

Abstract: In this paper, we present finite element approximations of a class of Generalized random fields defined over a bounded domain of R d or a smooth d-dimensional Riemannian manifold (d $\ge$ 1). An explicit expression for the covariance matrix of the weights of the finite element representation of these fields is provided and an analysis of the approximation error is carried out. Finally, a method to generate simulations of these weights while limiting computational and storage costs is presented.