Gauge-invariant treatment of the exponential decay of an unstable atomic state

Summary By using a self-consistent projection-operator method, developed recently by the present author, a gauge-invariant Markovian treatment of the spontaneous decay of an unstable atomic state is presented. Without ignoring retardation and electron-spin effects a gauge-invariant result for the probability amplitude of finding the atom in the unstable state is obtained.     

On the Solvability of the Multidimensional Version of the First Darboux Problem for a Model Second-Order Degenerating Hyperbolic Equation

A multidimensional version of the first Darboux problem is considered for a model second-order degenerating hyperbolic equation. Using the technique of functional spaces with a negative norm, the correct formulation of this problem in the Sobolev weighted space is proved.     

Classical limit of relativistic quantal system with attractive Coulomb interaction

Using the appropriate harmonic oscillator states and reasonable approximations, we construct coherent wavepackets corresponding to the solutions of the Klein-Gordon equation for the attractive potentialV(r)=−k/r, k>0, in two and three space dimensions. We deduce the corresponding classical limit in two dimension by requiring that the expectation value 〈r〉 of the radial variable is large. In the case of three dimensions, besides the condition of large 〈r〉, we make the uncertainty Δr=[〈r ²〉 − 〈r〉²]^1/2 a minimum with respect to certain parameter of the wavepacket. We then investigate the trajectory traversed by the wavepacket in the classical limit. We find that the classical limit of this relativistic quantal problem gives, in the leading order, the same expression for the rate of motion of the perihelion as that given by the solution of the corresponding special relativistic classical dynamical problem. We also briefly discuss some of the subtle aspects of the classical limit of the relativistic quantal system, in general.     

Derived Brackets

We survey the many instances of derived bracket construction in differential geometry, Lie algebroid and Courant algebroid theories, and their properties. We recall and compare the constructions of Buttin and of Vinogradov, and we prove that the Vinogradov bracket is the skew-symmetrization of a derived bracket. Odd (resp., even) Poisson brackets on supermanifolds are derived brackets of canonical even (resp., odd) Poisson brackets on their cotangent bundle (resp., parity-reversed cotangent bundle). Lie algebras have analogous properties, and the theory of Lie algebroids unifies the results valid for manifolds on the one hand, and for Lie algebras on the other. We outline the role of derived brackets in the theory of Poisson structures with background'.     

Bivariate Free Knot Splines

We consider the least squares approximation of gridded 2D data by tensor product splines with free knots. The smoothing functional to be minimized—a generalization of the univariate Schoenberg functional—is chosen in such a way that the solution of the bivariate problem separates into the solution of a sequence of univariate problems in case of fixed knots. The resulting optimization problem is a constrained separable least squares problem with tensor product structure. Based on some ideas developed by the authors for the univariate case, an efficient method for solving the specially structured 2D problem is proposed, analyzed and tested on hand of some examples from the literature.     

Asymptotic stability of semigroups associated with linear weak dissipative systems with memory

We study the asymptotic behavior of the solutions of a class of linear dissipative integral differential equations. We show in the abstract setting a necessary and sufficient condition to get an exponential decay of the solution. In the case of the lack of exponential decay, we find the polynomial rate of decay of the solution. Some examples are given.     

Banach-Saks property in Marcinkiewicz spaces

We catalogue all Marcinkiewicz function and sequence spaces with the Banach-Saks property and present necessary and sufficient conditions for a wide subclass of spaces to possess the p-Banach-Saks property, 1<p<∞. We apply our results to several open problems.     

Fixed-point theorems for families of weakly non-expansive maps

In this paper, we present some fixed-point theorems for families of weakly non-expansive maps under some relatively weaker and more general conditions. Our results generalize and improve several results due to Jungck [G. Jungck, Fixed points via a generalized local commutativity, Int. J. Math. Math. Sci. 25 (8) (2001) 497-507], Jachymski [J. Jachymski, A generalization of the theorem by Rhoades and Watson for contractive type mappings, Math. Japon. 38 (6) (1993) 1095-1102], Guo [C. Guo, An extension of fixed point theorem of Krasnoselski, Chinese J. Math. (P.O.C.) 21 (1) (1993) 13-20], Rhoades [B.E. Rhoades, A comparison of various definitions of contractive mappings, Trans. Amer. Math. Soc. 226 (1977) 257-290], and others.     

On a model of electromagnetic field propagation in ferroelectric media

The Maxwell system in an anisotropic, inhomogeneous medium with non-linear memory effect produced by a Maxwell type system for the polarization is investigated under low regularity assumptions on data and domain. The particular form of memory in the system is motivated by a model for electromagnetic wave propagation in ferromagnetic materials suggested by Greenberg, MacCamy and Coffman [J.M. Greenberg, R.C. MacCamy, C.V. Coffman, On the long-time behavior of ferroelectric systems, Phys. D 134 (1999) 362-383]. To avoid unnecessary regularity requirements the problem is approached as a system of space-time operator equation in the framework of extrapolation spaces (Sobolev lattices), a theoretical framework developed in [R. Picard, Evolution equations as space-time operator equations, Math. Anal. Appl. 173 (2) (1993) 436-458; R. Picard, Evolution equations as operator equations in lattices of Hilbert spaces, Glasnik Mat. 35 (2000) 111-136]. A solution theory for a large class of ferromagnetic materials confined to an arbitrary open set (with suitably generalized boundary conditions) is obtained.