Gradient Estimates for the Perfect and Insulated Conductivity Problems with Multiple Inclusions

In this paper, we study the perfect and the insulated conductivity problems with multiple inclusions imbedded in a bounded domain in ? ⁿ , n ≥ 2. For these two extreme cases of the conductivity problems, the gradients of their solutions may blow up as two inclusions approach each other. We establish the gradient estimates for the perfect conductivity problems and an upper bound of the gradients for the insulated conductivity problems in terms of the distances between any two closely spaced inclusions.     

Decomposition theorems and fine estimates for electrical fields in the presence of closely located circular inclusions

When two inclusions get closer and their conductivities degenerate to zero or infinity, the gradient of the solution to the conductivity equation blows up in general. In this paper, we show that the solution to the conductivity equation can be decomposed into two parts in an explicit form: one of them has a bounded gradient and the gradient of the other part blows up. Using the decomposition, we derive the best possible estimates for the blow-up of the gradient. We then consider the case when the inclusions have positive permittivities. We show quantitatively that in this case the size of the blow-up is reduced.     

Optimal estimates of the field enhancement in presence of a bow-tie structure of perfectly conducting inclusions in two dimensions

This paper deals with the field enhancement due to insertion of a bow-tie structure of perfectly conducting inclusions into the two-dimensional space with a given field. The field enhancement is represented by the gradient blow-up of a solution to the conductivity problem. The bow-tie structure consists of two disjoint bounded domains which have corners with possibly different aperture angles. The domains are parts of cones near the vertices which are nearly touching to each other. We construct functions explicitly which characterize the field enhancement. As consequences, we derive optimal estimates of the gradient in terms of the distance between two inclusions and aperture angles of the corners. The estimates show in quantitatively precise way that the field is enhanced beyond the corner singularities due to the interaction between two inclusions, and the blow-up rate is much higher than the one for the case of inclusions with smooth boundaries.     

Effective conductivity of composite materials with random positions of cylindrical inclusions: finite number inclusions in the cell

The effective conductivity of composite materials with random position n ²,n?∈?N, and the cylindrical identical inclusions inside periodic cells is considered. We compare the results for symmetric and nonsymmetric cases of location of the inclusions in the cells and find that a symmetric structure provides a minimum for the effective conductivity among all the structures having n ² inclusions of such conductivity and sizes.     

Error Estimates for Discretized Quantum Stochastic Differential Inclusions

Abstract

This paper is concerned with the error estimates involved in the solution of a discrete approximation of a quantum stochastic differential inclusion (QSDI). Our main results rely on certain properties of the averaged modulus of continuity for multivalued sesquilinear forms associated with QSDI. We obtained results concerning the estimates of the Hausdorff distance between the set of solutions of the QSDI and the set of solutions of its discrete approximation. This extends the results of Dontchev and Farkhi Dontchev, A.L.; Farkhi, E.M. (Error estimates for discre‐ tized differential inclusions. Computing 1989, 41, 349–358) concerning classical differential inclusions to the present noncommutative quantum setting involving inclusions in certain locally convex space.     

Estimates for the p-Laplacian-type operator in the subcritical Sobolev exponent range

We obtain Calderón–Zygmund-type gradient estimates below the duality exponent of very weak solutions to p-Laplacian-type elliptic equations with non-divergence datum by providing an analytic approach without using the fractional maximal function of order 1 for the non-divergence datum.     

Asymptotics of the solution to the conductivity equation in the presence of adjacent circular inclusions with finite conductivities

We consider the conductivity problem in the presence of adjacent circular inclusions with constant conductivities. When two inclusions get closer and their conductivities degenerate to zero or infinity, the gradient of the solution can be arbitrary large. In this paper we derive an asymptotic formula of the solution, which characterizes the gradient blow-up of the solution in terms of conductivities of inclusions as well as the distance between inclusions. The asymptotic formula is expressed in bipolar coordinates in terms of the Lerch transcendent function, and it is valid for inclusions with arbitrary constant conductivities. We illustrate our results with numerical calculations.     

Faedo–galerkin method for second-order evolution inclusions with <Emphasis Type="Italic">W</Emphasis><Subscript>λ</Subscript>-pseudomonotone mappings

A class of second-order operator differential inclusions with W _λ-pseudomonotone mappings is considered. The problem of the existence of solutions of the Cauchy problem for these inclusions is investigated by using the Faedo–Galerkin method. Important a priori estimates are obtained for solutions and their derivatives. An example that illustrates the proposed approach to the investigation of the problem considered is given.     

On the Shape Sensitivity of the First Dirichlet Eigenvalue for Two-Phase Problems

We consider a two-phase problem in thermal conductivity: inclusions filled with a material of conductivity σ ₁ are layered in a body of conductivity σ ₂. We address the shape sensitivity of the first eigenvalue associated with Dirichlet boundary conditions when both the boundaries of the inclusions and the body can be modified. We prove a differentiability result and provide the expressions of the first and second order derivatives. We apply the results to the optimal design of an insulated body. We prove the stability of the optimal design thanks to a second order analysis. We also continue the study of an extremal eigenvalue problem for a two-phase conductor in a ball initiated by Conca et al. (Appl. Math. Optim. 60(2):173–184, 2009) and pursued in Conca et al. (CANUM 2008, ESAIM Proc., vol. 27, pp.  311–321, EDP Sci., Les Ulis, 2009).     

The influence of variable thermophysical characteristics on the temperature field in a ceramic plate

We discuss an analytic method of determining the temperature fields in a rectangular plate of ceramic base type or a plate without inclusions. To increase the accuracy of the results obtained we take account of the temperature dependence of the coefficient of thermal conductivity and the specific heat capacity Translated fromMatematicheskie Melody i Fiziko-Mekhanicheskie Polya, Issue 31, 1990, pp. 99–103.     

Boundary estimates for elliptic systems with L<Superscript>1</Superscript>–data

We obtain boundary estimates for the gradient of solutions to elliptic systems with Dirichlet or Neumann boundary conditions and L ¹–data, under some condition on the divergence of the data. Similar boundary estimates are obtained for div–curl and Hodge systems.     

Polarization tensors and effective properties of anisotropic composite materials

In this paper, we present a systematic scheme for derivations of asymptotic expansions including higher-order terms, with estimates, of the effective electrical conductivity of periodic dilute composites in terms of the volume fraction occupied by the inclusions. The conductivities of the inclusion and the matrix may be anisotropic. Our derivations are based on layer potential techniques, and valid for high contrast mixtures and inclusions with Lipschitz boundaries. The asymptotic expansion is given in terms of the polarization tensor and the volume fraction of the inclusions. Important properties, such as symmetry and positivity, of the anisotropic polarization tensors are derived.     

Probing for electrical inclusions with complex spherical waves

Let a physical body Ω in ?² or ?³ be given. Assume that the electric conductivity distribution inside Ω consists of conductive inclusions in a known smooth background. Further, assume that a subset Γ ? ?Ω is available for boundary measurements. It is proved using hyperbolic geometry that certain information about the location of the inclusions can be exactly recovered from static electric measurements on Γ. More precisely: given a ball B with center outside the convex hull of Ω and satisfying (B? ∩ ?Ω) ? Γ, boundary measurements on Γ with explicitly given Dirichlet data are enough to determine whether B intersects the inclusion. An approximate detection algorithm is introduced based on the theory. Numerical experiments in dimension two with simulated noisy data suggest that the algorithm finds the inclusion‐free domain near Γ and is robust against measurement noise. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Gradient Estimates of Solutions to the Conductivity Problem with Flatter Insulators

We study the insulated conductivity problem with inclusions embedded in a bounded domain in R~n. When the distance of inclusions, denoted by ε, goes to 0, the gradient of solutions may blow up. When two inclusions are strictly convex, it was known that an upper bound of the blow-up rate is of order ε~(-1/2) for n = 2, and is of order ε~(-1/2+β)for some β 0 when dimension n ≥ 3. In this paper, we generalize the above results for insulators with flatter boundaries near touching points.     

Error estimates for mixed finite element methods for nonlinear parabolic problems

We consider a class of mixed finite element methods for nonlinear parabolic problems over a plane domain. The finite element spaces taken are Raviart-Thomas spaces of index k, k ? 0. We obtain optimal order L²- and almost optimal order L^∞-error estimates for the finite element solution and order optimal L²-error estimates for its gradient. We also derive the error estimates for the time derivatives of the solution. Our results extend those previously obtained by Johnson and Thomée for the corresponding linear problems with k ? 1.     

Thermal fracture of functionally gradient ceramics

An edge crack in a strip of functionally gradient ceramics (FGC) is studied under thermal loading conditions. Two FGC materials are considered, i.e., one with a spatial variation of shear modulus and the other with a spatial variation of thermal conductivity. Thermal stress intensity factors (TSIF) are numerically calculated based on singular integral equations derived for the dislocation density along the crack faces. It is shown that: (a) for the FGC with a graded shear modulus, the TSIF are reduced for crack lengths longer thanl _c b and remain approximately the same as those of a homogeneous material for shorter crack lengths, wherel _c is about 0.065 andb is the width of the strip; and (b) for the FGC with a thermal conductivity gradient, the TSIF are generally lower compared with those for the bonded two-layer material.     

Error norm estimation and stopping criteria in preconditioned conjugate gradient iterations

Some techniques suitable for the control of the solution error in the preconditioned conjugate gradient method are considered and compared. The estimation can be performed both in the course of the iterations and after their termination.The importance of such techniques follows from the non‐existence of some reasonable a priori error estimate for very ill‐conditioned linear systems when sufficient information about the right‐hand side vector is lacking. Hence, some a posteriori estimates are required, which make it possible to verify the quality of the solution obtained for a prescribed right‐hand side. The performance of the considered error control procedures is demonstrated using real‐world large‐scale linear systems arising in computational mechanics. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Linear elliptic equations in composite media with anisotropic fibres

Linear elliptic equations in composite media with anisotropic fibres are concerned. The media consist of a periodic set of anisotropic fibres with low conductivity, included in a connected matrix with high conductivity. Inside the anisotropic fibres, the conductivity in the longitudinal direction is relatively high compared with that in the transverse directions. The coefficients of the elliptic equations depend on the conductivity. This work is to derive the Hölder and the gradient $L^p$ estimates (uniformly in the period size of the set of anisotropic fibres as well as in the conductivity ratio of the fibres in the transverse directions to the connected matrix) for the solutions of the elliptic equations. Furthermore, it is shown that, inside the fibres, the solutions have higher regularity along the fibres than in the transverse directions.     

Computable error bounds and estimates for the conjugate gradient method

The conjugate gradient method is one of the most popular iterative methods for computing approximate solutions of linear systems of equations with a symmetric positive definite matrix A. It is generally desirable to terminate the iterations as soon as a sufficiently accurate approximate solution has been computed. This paper discusses known and new methods for computing bounds or estimates of the A-norm of the error in the approximate solutions generated by the conjugate gradient method.     

Boundedness of the gradient of a solution and Wiener test of order one for the biharmonic equation

The behavior of solutions to the biharmonic equation is well-understood in smooth domains. In the past two decades substantial progress has also been made for the polyhedral domains and domains with Lipschitz boundaries. However, very little is known about higher order elliptic equations in the general setting. In this paper we introduce new integral identities that allow to investigate the solutions to the biharmonic equation in an arbitrary domain. We establish: (1) boundedness of the gradient of a solution in any three-dimensional domain; (2) pointwise estimates on the derivatives of the biharmonic Green function; (3) Wiener-type necessary and sufficient conditions for continuity of the gradient of a solution. Mathematics Subject Classification (2000)  35J40, 35J30, 35B65