Use a Parametric Curve 2D () or Parametric Curve 3D () dataset to visualize data along a general parametric curve. Visualize the parametric curve as a line plot in its original space dimension (2D or 3D) and as a line graph plot in 1D. Parametric Curve datasets always use the spatial frame when evaluating outside the meshed domain. Select these options from the More 2D Datasets and More 3D Datasets submenus.

Enter a Name and the Minimum and Maximum range of the parameter curve. You can use numbers, parameters, and solution-dependent expressions for the range limits.

Enter functions for the coordinates of the parameter. For Parametric Curve 2D, enter values in the x and y fields. For Parametric Curve 3D, enter values in the x, y, and z fields.

If you want to evaluate an expression defined globally where there is also no domain mesh, select the Only evaluate globally defined expressions checkbox. It is then possible to, for example, postprocess a BEM model without a domain mesh inside the domain. The expressions that you can evaluate with this setting can be functions of the space variables and the domain variable dom.

In 3D, select the Snap to closest boundary checkbox to snap the selected points to the closest boundary in the geometry. Use this option when evaluating a variable that is available on boundaries but not in domains. Otherwise, leave the snapping off (the default setting) to avoid the additional computational cost. However, snapping always happens if the underlying dataset has a shell geometry.

Enter the number of subdivisions of the parameter range. The default Resolution is 1000, and the valid range is between 2 and 1,000,000 subdivisions. A high resolution might require significant computational resources.

Tangent variables are created for these dataset. Under Tangent variables, you can change the default names (pc1tx, pc1ty, and pc1tz, for example, in 3D) in the tx, ty, and tz fields. The tangent vectors defined using these variables have unit length.