|
Elliptic Operator
In the theory of partial differential equations, elliptic operators are differential operators that generalize the Laplace operator. They are defined by the condition that the coefficients of the highest-order derivatives be positive, which implies the key property that the principal symbol is invertible, or equivalently that there are no real characteristic directions. Elliptic operators are typical of potential theory, and they appear frequently in electrostatics and continuum mechanics. Elliptic regularity implies that their solutions tend to be smooth functions (if the coefficients in the operator are smooth). Steady-state solutions to hyperbolic and parabolic equations generally solve elliptic equations. Definitions Let L be linear differential operator of order ''m'' on a domain \Omega in R''n'' given by Lu = \sum_ a_\alpha(x)\partial^\alpha u where \alpha = (\alpha_1, \dots, \alpha_n) denotes a multi-index, and \partial^\alpha u = \partial^_1 \cdots \partial_ ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Laplacian
In mathematics, the Laplace operator or Laplacian is a differential operator given by the divergence of the gradient of a scalar function on Euclidean space. It is usually denoted by the symbols \nabla\cdot\nabla, \nabla^2 (where \nabla is the nabla operator), or \Delta. In a Cartesian coordinate system, the Laplacian is given by the sum of second partial derivatives of the function with respect to each independent variable. In other coordinate systems, such as cylindrical and spherical coordinates, the Laplacian also has a useful form. Informally, the Laplacian of a function at a point measures by how much the average value of over small spheres or balls centered at deviates from . The Laplace operator is named after the French mathematician Pierre-Simon de Laplace (1749–1827), who first applied the operator to the study of celestial mechanics: the Laplacian of the gravitational potential due to a given mass density distribution is a constant multiple of that den ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fredholm Alternative
In mathematics, the Fredholm alternative, named after Ivar Fredholm, is one of Fredholm's theorems and is a result in Fredholm theory. It may be expressed in several ways, as a theorem of linear algebra, a theorem of integral equations, or as a theorem on Fredholm operators. Part of the result states that a non-zero complex number in the spectrum of a compact operator is an eigenvalue. Linear algebra If ''V'' is an ''n''-dimensional vector space and T:V\to V is a linear transformation, then exactly one of the following holds: #For each vector ''v'' in ''V'' there is a vector ''u'' in ''V'' so that T(u) = v. In other words: ''T'' is surjective (and so also bijective, since ''V'' is finite-dimensional). #\dim(\ker(T)) > 0. A more elementary formulation, in terms of matrices, is as follows. Given an ''m''×''n'' matrix ''A'' and a ''m''×1 column vector b, exactly one of the following must hold: #''Either:'' ''A'' x = b has a solution x #''Or:'' ''A''T y = 0 has a s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dirac Operator
In mathematics and quantum mechanics, a Dirac operator is a differential operator that is a formal square root, or half-iterate, of a second-order operator such as a Laplacian. The original case which concerned Paul Dirac was to factorise formally an operator for Minkowski space, to get a form of quantum theory compatible with special relativity; to get the relevant Laplacian as a product of first-order operators he introduced spinors. It was first published in 1928. Formal definition In general, let ''D'' be a first-order differential operator acting on a vector bundle ''V'' over a Riemannian manifold ''M''. If :D^2=\Delta, \, where ∆ is the Laplacian of ''V'', then ''D'' is called a Dirac operator. In high-energy physics, this requirement is often relaxed: only the second-order part of ''D''2 must equal the Laplacian. Examples Example 1 ''D'' = −''i'' ∂''x'' is a Dirac operator on the tangent bundle over a line. Example 2 Consider a simple bundle of notable imp ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Isomorphism
In mathematics, an isomorphism is a structure-preserving mapping between two structures of the same type that can be reversed by an inverse mapping. Two mathematical structures are isomorphic if an isomorphism exists between them. The word isomorphism is derived from the Ancient Greek: ἴσος ''isos'' "equal", and μορφή ''morphe'' "form" or "shape". The interest in isomorphisms lies in the fact that two isomorphic objects have the same properties (excluding further information such as additional structure or names of objects). Thus isomorphic structures cannot be distinguished from the point of view of structure only, and may be identified. In mathematical jargon, one says that two objects are . An automorphism is an isomorphism from a structure to itself. An isomorphism between two structures is a canonical isomorphism (a canonical map that is an isomorphism) if there is only one isomorphism between the two structures (as it is the case for solutions of a uni ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Covariant Derivative
In mathematics, the covariant derivative is a way of specifying a derivative along tangent vectors of a manifold. Alternatively, the covariant derivative is a way of introducing and working with a connection on a manifold by means of a differential operator, to be contrasted with the approach given by a principal connection on the frame bundle – see affine connection. In the special case of a manifold isometrically embedded into a higher-dimensional Euclidean space, the covariant derivative can be viewed as the orthogonal projection of the Euclidean directional derivative onto the manifold's tangent space. In this case the Euclidean derivative is broken into two parts, the extrinsic normal component (dependent on the embedding) and the intrinsic covariant derivative component. The name is motivated by the importance of changes of coordinate in physics: the covariant derivative transforms covariantly under a general coordinate transformation, that is, linearly via the J ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cauchy–Riemann Equations
In the field of complex analysis in mathematics, the Cauchy–Riemann equations, named after Augustin Cauchy and Bernhard Riemann, consist of a system of two partial differential equations which, together with certain continuity and differentiability criteria, form a necessary and sufficient condition for a complex function to be holomorphic (complex differentiable). This system of equations first appeared in the work of Jean le Rond d'Alembert. Later, Leonhard Euler connected this system to the analytic functions. Cauchy then used these equations to construct his theory of functions. Riemann's dissertation on the theory of functions appeared in 1851. The Cauchy–Riemann equations on a pair of real-valued functions of two real variables and are the two equations: Typically ''u'' and ''v'' are taken to be the real and imaginary parts respectively of a complex-valued function of a single complex variable , . Suppose that and are real- differentiable at a point in ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fundamental Solution
In mathematics, a fundamental solution for a linear partial differential operator is a formulation in the language of distribution theory of the older idea of a Green's function (although unlike Green's functions, fundamental solutions do not address boundary conditions). In terms of the Dirac delta "function" , a fundamental solution is a solution of the inhomogeneous equation Here is ''a priori'' only assumed to be a distribution. This concept has long been utilized for the Laplacian in two and three dimensions. It was investigated for all dimensions for the Laplacian by Marcel Riesz. The existence of a fundamental solution for any operator with constant coefficients — the most important case, directly linked to the possibility of using convolution to solve an arbitrary right hand side — was shown by Bernard Malgrange and Leon Ehrenpreis. In the context of functional analysis, fundamental solutions are usually developed via the Fredholm alternative and explored i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hypoelliptic Operator
In the theory of partial differential equations, a partial differential operator P defined on an open subset :U \subset^n is called hypoelliptic if for every distribution u defined on an open subset V \subset U such that Pu is C^\infty (smooth), u must also be C^\infty. If this assertion holds with C^\infty replaced by real-analytic, then P is said to be ''analytically hypoelliptic''. Every elliptic operator with C^\infty coefficients is hypoelliptic. In particular, the Laplacian is an example of a hypoelliptic operator (the Laplacian is also analytically hypoelliptic). In addition, the operator for the heat equation (P(u)=u_t - k\,\Delta u\,) :P= \partial_t - k\,\Delta_x\, (where k>0) is hypoelliptic but not elliptic. However, the operator for the wave equation The (two-way) wave equation is a second-order linear partial differential equation for the description of waves or standing wave fields — as they occur in classical physics — such as mechanical wave ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sobolev Space
In mathematics, a Sobolev space is a vector space of functions equipped with a norm that is a combination of ''Lp''-norms of the function together with its derivatives up to a given order. The derivatives are understood in a suitable weak sense to make the space complete, i.e. a Banach space. Intuitively, a Sobolev space is a space of functions possessing sufficiently many derivatives for some application domain, such as partial differential equations, and equipped with a norm that measures both the size and regularity of a function. Sobolev spaces are named after the Russian mathematician Sergei Sobolev. Their importance comes from the fact that weak solutions of some important partial differential equations exist in appropriate Sobolev spaces, even when there are no strong solutions in spaces of continuous functions with the derivatives understood in the classical sense. Motivation In this section and throughout the article \Omega is an open subset of \R^n. There are ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Weak Solution
In mathematics, a weak solution (also called a generalized solution) to an ordinary or partial differential equation is a function for which the derivatives may not all exist but which is nonetheless deemed to satisfy the equation in some precisely defined sense. There are many different definitions of weak solution, appropriate for different classes of equations. One of the most important is based on the notion of distributions. Avoiding the language of distributions, one starts with a differential equation and rewrites it in such a way that no derivatives of the solution of the equation show up (the new form is called the weak formulation, and the solutions to it are called weak solutions). Somewhat surprisingly, a differential equation may have solutions which are not differentiable; and the weak formulation allows one to find such solutions. Weak solutions are important because many differential equations encountered in modelling real-world phenomena do not admit of suffi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lax–Milgram Lemma
Weak formulations are important tools for the analysis of mathematical equations that permit the transfer of concepts of linear algebra to solve problems in other fields such as partial differential equations. In a weak formulation, equations or conditions are no longer required to hold absolutely (and this is not even well defined) and has instead weak solutions only with respect to certain "test vectors" or "test functions". In a strong formulation, the solution space is constructed such that these equations or conditions are already fulfilled. The Lax–Milgram theorem, named after Peter Lax and Arthur Milgram who proved it in 1954, provides weak formulations for certain systems on Hilbert spaces. General concept Let V be a Banach space, V' its dual space, A\colon V \to V', and f \in V'. Finding the solution u \in V of the equation Au = f is equivalent to finding u\in V such that, for all v \in V, uv) = f(v). Here, v is called a test vector or test function. To bring ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
