On weak and strong reachability and controllability of infinite-dimensional linear systems

The notions of reachability and controllability generalize to infinite-dimensional systems in two different ways. We show that the strong notions are equivalent to finite-time reachability and controllability. For discrete systems in Hilbert space, we get simple relations generalizing the Kalman conditions. In the case of a continuous system in Hilbert space, weak reachability is equivalent to the weak reachability of a related discrete system via the Cayley transform.This research was partially supported by the Batsheva de Rothschild Fund for the Advancement of Science and Technology.