Fractional motions

Brownian motion is the archetypal model for random transport processes in science and engineering. Brownian motion displays neither wild fluctuations (the “Noah effect”), nor long-range correlations (the “Joseph effect”). The quintessential model for processes displaying the Noah effect is Lévy motion, the quintessential model for processes displaying the Joseph effect is fractional Brownian motion, and the prototypical model for processes displaying both the Noah and Joseph effects is fractional Lévy motion. In this paper we review these four random-motion models–henceforth termed “fractional motions” –via a unified physical setting that is based on Langevin’s equation, the Einstein–Smoluchowski paradigm, and stochastic scaling limits. The unified setting explains the universal macroscopic emergence of fractional motions, and predicts–according to microscopic-level details–which of the four fractional motions will emerge on the macroscopic level. The statistical properties of fractional motions are classified and parametrized by two exponents—a “Noah exponent” governing their fluctuations, and a “Joseph exponent” governing their dispersions and correlations. This self-contained review provides a concise and cohesive introduction to fractional motions.     

Numerical solution for a sub-diffusion equation with a smooth kernel

In this paper we study the numerical solution of an initial value problem of a sub-diffusion type. For the time discretization we apply the discontinuous Galerkin method and we use continuous piecewise finite elements for the space discretization. Optimal order convergence rates of our numerical solution have been shown. We compare our theoretical error bounds with the results of numerical computations. We also present some numerical results showing the super-convergence rates of the proposed method.     

Maximum principle and its application for the nonlinear time-fractional diffusion equations with Cauchy-Dirichlet conditions

In this paper, a maximum principle for the one-dimensional sub-diffusion equation with Atangana–Baleanu fractional derivative is formulated and proved. The proof of the maximum principle is based on an extremum principle for the Atangana–Baleanu fractional derivative that is given in the paper, too. The maximum principle is then applied to show that the initial–boundary-value problem for the linear and nonlinear time-fractional diffusion equations possesses at most one classical solution and this solution continuously depends on the initial and boundary conditions.     

A probabilistic walk up power laws

We establish a path leading from Pareto’s law to anomalous diffusion, and present along the way a panoramic overview of power-law statistics. Pareto’s law is shown to universally emerge from “Central Limit Theorems” for rank distributions and exceedances, and is further shown to be a finite-dimensional projection of an infinite-dimensional underlying object — Pareto’s Poisson process  . The fundamental importance and centrality of Pareto’s Poisson process is described, and we demonstrate how this process universally generates an array of anomalous diffusion statistics characterized by intrinsic power-law structures: sub-diffusion and super-diffusion, Lévy laws and the “Noah effect”, long-range dependence and the “Joseph effect”, 1/f$1/f$ noises, and anomalous relaxation.     

A Fourier method for the fractional diffusion equation describing sub-diffusion

In this paper, a fractional partial differential equation (FPDE) describing sub-diffusion is considered. An implicit difference approximation scheme (IDAS) for solving a FPDE is presented. We propose a Fourier method for analyzing the stability and convergence of the IDAS, derive the global accuracy of the IDAS, and discuss the solvability. Finally, numerical examples are given to compare with the exact solution for the order of convergence, and simulate the fractional dynamical systems.     

A box-type scheme for fractional sub-diffusion equation with Neumann boundary conditions

Combining order reduction approach and L1 discretization, a box-type scheme is presented for solving a class of fractional sub-diffusion equation with Neumann boundary conditions. A new inner product and corresponding norm with a Sobolev embedding inequality are introduced. A novel technique is applied in the proof of both stability and convergence. The global convergence order in maximum norm is O(τ^2−α + h²). The accuracy and efficiency of the scheme are checked by two numerical tests.