kth Order convergence for semilinear elliptic boundary value problems

The method of quasilinearization coupled with the method of upper and lower solutions, is applied to the semilinear elliptic boundary value problems. At the same time, the result of kth convergence for the semilinear boundary value problems is obtained via the idea of Taylors approximation.     

Exact and approximation algorithms for the min–max k-traveling salesmen problem on a tree

Given k identical salesmen, where k ? 2 is a constant independent of the input size, the min–max k-traveling salesmen problem on a tree is to determine a set of k tours for the salesmen to serve all customers that are located on a tree-shaped network, so that each tour starts from and returns to the root of the tree with the maximum total edge weight of the tours minimized. The problem is known to be NP-hard even when k = 2. In this paper, we have developed a pseudo-polynomial time exact algorithm for this problem with any constant k ? 2, closing a question that has remained open for a decade. Along with this, we have further developed a (1 + ?)-approximation algorithm for any ? > 0.     

An analytical comparison of the LP relaxations of integer models for the k-club problem

Given an undirected graph G = (V, E), a k-club is a subset of nodes that induces a subgraph with diameter at most k. The k-club problem is to find a maximum cardinality k-club. In this study, we use a linear programming relaxation standpoint to compare integer formulations for the k-club problem. The comparisons involve formulations known from the literature and new formulations, built in different variable spaces. For the case k = 3, we propose two enhanced compact formulations. From the LP relaxation standpoint these formulations dominate all other compact formulations in the literature and are equivalent to a formulation with a non-polynomial number of constraints. Also for k = 3, we compare the relative strength of LP relaxations for all formulations examined in the study (new and known from the literature). Based on insights obtained from the comparative study, we devise a strengthened version of a recursive compact formulation in the literature for the k-club problem (k > 1) and show how to modify one of the new formulations for the case k = 3 in order to accommodate additional constraints recently proposed in the literature.     

On well-posedness of semilinear parabolic and elliptic problems in the hyperbolic space

We investigate existence and uniqueness of solutions to semilinear parabolic and elliptic equations in bounded domains of the n-dimensional hyperbolic space (n?3). Lp→Lq estimates for the semigroup generated by the Laplace-Beltrami operator are obtained and then used to prove existence and uniqueness results for parabolic problems. Moreover, under proper assumptions on the nonlinear function, we establish uniqueness of positive classical solutions and nonuniqueness of singular solutions of the elliptic problem; furthermore, for the corresponding semilinear parabolic problem, nonuniqueness of weak solutions is stated.     

Existence and multiplicity of solutions for elliptic equations with jumping nonlinearities

In this paper we are concerned with a semilinear elliptic Dirichlet problem with jumping nonlinearity and, using a completely variational method, we show that the number of solutions may be arbitrarily large provided the number of jumped eigenvalues is large enough. In order to prove this fact, we show that for every positive integer k, when a suitable parameter is large enough, there exists a solution which presents k peaks. Under the assumptions we consider in this paper, new (unexpected) phenomena are observed in the study of this problem and new methods are required to construct the k-peaks solutions and describe their asymptotic behavior (weak limits of the rescaled solutions, localization of the concentration points of the peaks, asymptotic profile of the rescaled peaks, etc.).     

Existence and Nonexistence of Entire Positive Solutions of Semilinear Elliptic Systems

We show that entire positive solutions exist for the semilinear elliptic system Δu = p(x)v^α, Δv = q(x)u^β on R^N, N ≥ 3, for positive α and β, provided that the nonnegative functions p and q are continuous and satisfy appropriate decay conditions at infinity. We also show that entire solutions fail to exist if the functions p and q are of slow decay.     

Multiple solutions for a class of elliptic equations with jumping nonlinearities

We consider a semilinear elliptic Dirichlet problem with jumping nonlinearity and, using variational methods, we show that the number of solutions tends to infinity as the number of jumped eigenvalues tends to infinity. In order to prove this fact, for every positive integer k we prove that, when a parameter is large enough, there exists a solution which presents k interior peaks. We also describe the asymptotic behaviour and the profile of this solution as the parameter tends to infinity.     

Multiscale analysis and numerical algorithm for the Schrödinger equations in heterogeneous media

In solid state physics, the most widely used techniques to calculate the electronic levels in nanostructures are the effective masses approximation (EMA) and its extension the multiband k · p method (see [9]). They have been particularly successful in the case of heterostructures (see, e.g. [4], [9] and [11]). This paper discusses the multiscale analysis of the Schrödinger equation with rapidly oscillating coefficients. The new contributions obtained in this paper are the determination of the convergence rate for the approximate solutions, the definition of boundary layer solutions, and higher-order correctors. Consequently, a multiscale finite element method and some numerical results are presented. As one of the main results of this paper, we give a reasonable interpretation why the effective mass approximation is very accurate for calculating the band structures in semiconductor in the vicinity of Γ point, from the viewpoint of mathematics.     

Quasilinearization Method for Nonlinear Elliptic Boundary-Value Problems

The quasilinearization method is developed for strong solutions of semilinear and nonlinear elliptic boundary-value problems. We obtain two monotone, L^p-convergent sequences of approximate solutions. The order of convergence is two. The tools are some results on the abstract quasilinearization method and from weakly–near operators theory.     

A semismooth Newton method for a class of semilinear optimal control problems with box and volume constraints

In this paper we consider optimal control problems subject to a semilinear elliptic state equation together with the control constraints 0≤u≤1 and ∫u=m. Optimality conditions for this problem are derived and reformulated as a nonlinear, nonsmooth equation which is solved using a semismooth Newton method. A regularization of the nonsmooth equation is necessary to obtain the superlinear convergence of the semismooth Newton method. We prove that the solutions of the regularized problems converge to a solution of the original problem and a path-following technique is used to ensure a constant decrease rate of the residual. We show that, in certain situations, the optimal controls take 0–1 values, which amounts to solving a topology optimization problem with volume constraint.     

The existence of k-convex hypersurface with prescribed mean curvature

Using the strong maximum principle, we obtain a constant rank theorem for the k-convex solutions of semilinear elliptic partial differential equations. As an application we obtain an existence theorem of k-convex starshaped hypersurface with prescribed mean curvature in R ⁿ⁺¹.     

Positive solutions of a semilinear elliptic equation with singular nonlinearity

This paper is devoted to the study of positive solutions of the semilinear elliptic equation Δu+K(|x|)u−p=0, x∈Rn with n?3 and p>0. Asymptotic behaviours of sky states and uniqueness of singular sky states are obtained via invariant manifold theory of dynamical systems. The Dirichlet problem in exterior domains is also studied. It is proved that this problem has infinitely many positive solutions with fast growth.     

Multiple nontrivial solutions for resonant Neumann problems

We consider semilinear second order elliptic Neumann problems, which are resonant both at infinity (with respect to an eigenvalue λ_k, k ≥ 1) and at zero (with respect to the principal eigenvalue λ₀ = 0). Using techniques from Morse theory, combined with variational methods, we are able to show that the problem has at least four nontrivial smooth solutions (© 2010 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Enumerating K best paths in length order in DAGs

We address the problem of finding the K best paths connecting a given pair of nodes in a directed acyclic graph (DAG) with arbitrary lengths. One of the main results in this paper is the proof that a tree representing the kth shortest path is obtained by an arc exchange in one of the previous (k − 1) trees (each of which contains a previous best path). An O(m + K(n + log K)) time and O(K + m) space algorithm is designed to explicitly determine the K shortest paths in a DAG with n nodes and m arcs. The algorithm runs in O(m + Kn) time using O(K + m) space in DAGs with integer length arcs. Empirical results confirming the superior performance of the algorithm to others found in the literature for randomly generated graphs are reported.     

Some analytic approximations for neutral stochastic functional differential equations

We consider an analytic iterative method to approximate the solution of a neutral stochastic functional differential equation. More precisely, we define a sequence of approximate equations and we give sufficient conditions under which the approximate solutions converge with probability one and in pth moment sense, p ? 2, to the solution of the initial equation. We introduce the notion of the Z-algorithm for this iterative method and present some examples to illustrate the theory. Especially, we point out that the well-known Picard method of iterations is a special Z-algorithm.     

Matrix inverse problem and its optimal approximation problem for R-skew symmetric matrices

Let R ∈ C^n×n be a nontrivial involution, i.e., R² = I and R ≠ ±I. A matrix A ∈ C^n×n is called R-skew symmetric if RAR = −A. The least-squares solutions of the matrix inverse problem for R-skew symmetric matrices with R∗ = R are firstly derived, then the solvability conditions and the solutions of the matrix inverse problem for R-skew symmetric matrices with R∗ = R are given. The solutions of the corresponding optimal approximation problem with R∗ = R for R-skew symmetric matrices are also derived. At last an algorithm for the optimal approximation problem is given. It can be seen that we extend our previous results [G.X. Huang, F. Yin, Matrix inverse problem and its optimal approximation problem for R-symmetric matrices, Appl. Math. Comput. 189 (2007) 482-489] and the results proposed by Zhou et al. [F.Z. Zhou, L. Zhang, X.Y. Hu, Least-square solutions for inverse problem of centrosymmetric matrices, Comput. Math. Appl. 45 (2003) 1581-1589].     

Analyzing the longitudinal effect of hypersonic flow past a conical cone via the perturbation method

To analyze the hypersonic flow past a conical cone, the variations of gasdynamic properties subjected to the longitudinal curvature effect by using the perturbation method. An outer perturbation expansion has been carried out by recent researchers, but a problem occurred, the outer expansion solutions are not uniformly valid in the shock layer, however, the outcome near the conical body surface called vortical layer remains deflective. This study intends to discover uniformly valid analytical solutions in the shock layer by applying the inner perturbation expansions matching with the out expansions to analyze the characteristics in the whole region including shock layer and vortical layer. Starting from the zero-order approximate solutions for hypersonic conical flow is then applied as the basic solutions for the outer perturbation expansions of a flow field. The governing equations and boundary conditions are also expanded via outer perturbations. Using an approximate analytical scheme in the derivation process, first-order perturbation equations can be simplified and the approximate closed-form solutions are obtained; furthermore, the various flow field quantities, including the normal force coefficient on the cone surface, have been calculated. According to the variations of gasdynamic properties, the longitudinal curvature effect for the hypersonic flow past a conical cone can be determined. Thicknesses of shock layer and vortical layer can be predicted as well. The physical phenomena inside both layers can be investigated carefully, the conditions for an elliptic cone with longitudinal curvature, m = 1 and n = 2 and other conditions of parameters; the perturbation parameter, ε_m2 = 0.1, semi-vertex angle of the unperturbed cone, δ = 10°, and hypersonic similarity parameter, K_δ = M_∞δ = 1.0, the thickness of vortical layer, η_VL, can be calculated at the position angle of conical cone body, ? = 30° was demonstrated here. Results show how very thin the vortical layer is approximately only 10% of the shock layer close to the body, the pressure in the whole shock layer is verified to be uniformly valid which agrees with previous studies. Large gradient changes in entropy and density are found when the flow approaches the cone surface, the most important is, this method provides a benchmark solution to the hypersonic flow past a conical cone and to assist the grids and numerics for numerical computation should be fashioned to accommodate the whole flow field region including the vortical layer of rapid adjustment, and let the analysis become more effective and low cost.     

Approximate controllability and homogenization of a semilinear elliptic problem

The L²- and H¹-approximate controllability and homogenization of a semilinear elliptic boundary-value problem is studied in this paper. The principal term of the state equation has rapidly oscillating coefficients and the control region is locally distributed. The observation region is a subset of codimension 1 in the case of L²-approximate controllability or is locally distributed in the case of H¹-approximate controllability. By using the classical Fenchel-Rockafellar's duality theory, the existence of an approximate control of minimal norm is established by means of a fixed point argument. We consider its asymptotic behavior as the rapidly oscillating coefficients H-converge. We prove its convergence to an approximate control of minimal norm for the homogenized problem.     

Extended Jacobi elliptic function expansion solutions of variant Boussinesq equations

With the aid of symbolic computation Maple, an extended Jacobi elliptic function expansion method is presented and successfully applied to variant Boussinesq equations. As a result, abundant periodic wave solutions in terms of the Jacobi elliptic functions are obtained. When the modulus m → 1 or m → 0, exact solitary wave solutions and trigonometric function solutions are also derived. The properties of four new solutions are graphically studied.     

A multiplicity theorem for problems with the p-Laplacian

We consider a nonlinear elliptic problem driven by the p-Laplacian, with a parameter λ∈R and a nonlinearity exhibiting a superlinear behavior both at zero and at infinity. We show that if the parameter λ is bigger than λ₂=the second eigenvalue of , then the problem has at least three nontrivial solutions. Our approach combines the method of upper-lower solutions with variational techniques involving the Second Deformation Theorem. The multiplicity result that we prove extends an earlier semilinear (i.e. p=2) result due to Struwe [M. Struwe, Variational Methods, Springer-Verlag, Berlin, 1990].