The Kadomtsev-Petviashvili II equation on the half-plane

The KPII equation is an integrable nonlinear PDE in 2+1 dimensions (two spatial and one temporal), which arises in several physical circumstances, including fluid mechanics, where it describes waves in shallow water. It provides a multidimensional generalisation of the renowned KdV equation. In this work, we employ a novel approach recently introduced by one of the authors in connection with the Davey-Stewartson equation (Fokas (2009) [13]), in order to analyse the initial-boundary value problem for the KPII equation formulated on the half-plane. The analysis makes crucial use of the so-called d-bar formalism, as well as of the so-called global relation. A novel feature of boundary as opposed to initial value problems in 2+1 is that the d-bar formalism now involves a function in the complex plane which is discontinuous across the real axis.     

The Davey-Stewartson Equation on the Half-Plane

The Davey-Stewartson (DS) equation is a nonlinear integrable evolution equation in two spatial dimensions. It provides a multidimensional generalisation of the celebrated nonlinear Schrödinger (NLS) equation and it appears in several physical situations. The implementation of the Inverse Scattering Transform (IST) to the solution of the initial-value problem of the NLS was presented in 1972, whereas the analogous problem for the DS equation was solved in 1983. These results are based on the formulation and solution of certain classical problems in complex analysis, namely of a Riemann Hilbert problem (RH) and of either a d-bar or a non-local RH problem respectively. A method for solving the mathematically more complicated but physically more relevant case of boundary-value problems for evolution equations in one spatial dimension, like the NLS, was finally presented in 1997, after interjecting several novel ideas to the panoply of the IST methodology. Here, this method is further extended so that it can be applied to evolution equations in two spatial dimensions, like the DS equation. This novel extension involves several new steps, including the formulation of a d-bar problem for a sectionally non-analytic function, i.e. for a function which has different non-analytic representations in different domains of the complex plane. This, in addition to the computation of a d-bar derivative, also requires the computation of the relevant jumps across the different domains. This latter step has certain similarities (but is more complicated) with the corresponding step for those initial-value problems in two dimensions which can be solved via a non-local RH problem, like KPI.     

The Recursion Operator of the Kadomtsev-Petviashvili Equation and the Squared Eigenfunctions of the Schrödinger Operator

The recursion operator of the Kadomtsev-Petviashvili equation is algorithmically derived. This recursion operator is the two-spatial-dimensional analogue of the Lenard operator of the Korteweg-deVries equation. It is also the “squared” eigenfunction operator of the time-dependent Schrödinger operator. The existence of the recursion operator suggests that the Kadomtsev-Petviashvili equation is a hi-Hamiltonian system.     

Recursion operators and bi-Hamiltonian structures in multidimensions. I

The algebraic properties of exactly solvable evolution equations in one spatial and one temporal dimensions have been well studied. In particular, the factorization of certain operators, called recursion operators, establishes the bi-Hamiltonian nature of all these equations. Recently, we have presented the recursion operator and the bi-Hamiltonian formulation of the Kadomtsev-Petviashvili equation, a two spatial dimensional analogue of the Korteweg-deVries equation. Here we present the general theory associated with recursion operators for bi-Hamiltonian equations in two spatial and one temporal dimensions. As an application we show that general classes of equations, which include the Kadomtsev-Petviashvili and the Davey-Stewartson equations, possess infinitely many commuting symmetries and infinitely many constants of motion in involution under two distinct Poisson brackets. Furthermore, we show that the relevant recursion operators naturally follow from the underlying isospectral eigenvalue problems.     

Greatly attenuated experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis in aquaporin-4 knockout mice

Background  

The involvement of astrocyte water channel aquaporin-4 (AQP4) in autoimmune diseases of the central nervous system has been suggested following the identification of AQP4 autoantibodies in neuromyelitis optica, an inflammatory demyelinating disease.     

Integrable nonlinear evolution partial differential equations in 4 + 2 and 3 + 1 dimensions

The derivation and solution of integrable nonlinear evolution partial differential equations in three spatial dimensions has been the holy grail in the field of integrability since the late 1970s. The celebrated Korteweg-de Vries and nonlinear Schr?dinger equations, as well as the Kadomtsev-Petviashvili (KP) and Davey-Stewartson (DS) equations, are prototypical examples of integrable evolution equations in one and two spatial dimensions, respectively. Do there exist integrable analogs of these equations in three spatial dimensions? In what follows, I present a positive answer to this question. In particular, I first present integrable generalizations of the KP and DS equations, which are formulated in four spatial dimensions and which have the novelty that they involve complex time. I then impose the requirement of real time, which implies a reduction to three spatial dimensions. I also present a method of solution.     

Spatial characterization of the transversal structure of rotationally symmetric pulsed beams

A simple analytical model is proposed to describe the transversal spatial structure of a tridimensional rotationally symmetric pulsed beam. The spatial behaviour of the pulse amplitude is shown to be linked to its (measurable) second- and higher-order intensity moments, namely, beam width, quality parameter and kurtosis. As an illustrative experimental example, this model has been applied to high-quality TEA CO2 laser pulses. This revised version was published online in November 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Absolute and Convective Instability for Evolution PDEs on the Half-Line

We analyze evolution PDEs exhibiting absolute (temporal) as well as convective (spatial) instability. Let  ω( k )  be the associated symbol, i.e., let  exp[ ikx −ω( k ) t ]  be a solution of the PDE. We first study the problem on the infinite line with an arbitrary initial condition   q ₀( x )  , where   q ₀( x )  decays as  | x | → ∞  . By making use of a certain transformation in the complex k -plane, which leaves  ω( k )  invariant, we show that this problem can be analyzed in an elementary manner. We then study the problem on the half-line, a problem physically more realistic but mathematically more difficult. By making use of the above transformation, as well as by employing a general method recently introduced for the solution of initial-boundary value problems, we show that this problem can also be analyzed in a straightforward manner. The analysis is presented for a general PDE and is illustrated for two physically significant evolution PDEs with spatial derivatives up to second order and up to fourth order, respectively. The second-order equation is a linearized Ginzburg–Landau equation arising in Rayleigh–Bénard convection and in the stability of plane Poiseuille flow, while the fourth-order equation is a linearized Kuramoto–Sivashinsky equation, which includes dispersion and which models among other applications, interfacial phenomena in multifluid flows.