On energy-stable and high order finite element methods for the wave equation in heterogeneous media with perfectly matched layers

Abstract: This paper presents a stable finite element approximation for the acoustic wave equation on second-order form, with perfectly matched layers (PML) at the boundaries. Energy estimates are derived for varying PML damping for both the discrete and the continuous case. Moreover, a priori error estimates are derived for constant PML damping. Most of the analysis is performed in Laplace space. Numerical experiments in physical space validate the theoretical results.