Stable viscosity matrices for systems of conservation laws

A natural class of appropriate viscosity matrices for strictly hyperbolic systems of conservation laws in one space dimension, u₁ + f(u)_x = 0, u?R^m, is studied. These matrices are admissible in the sense that small-amplitude shock wave solutions of the hyperbolic system are shown to be limits of smooth traveling wave solutions of the parabolic system u_t + f(u)_x = v(Du_x)_x as ifv → 0 if D is in this class. The class is determined by a linearized stability requirement: The Cauchy problem for the equation u₁ + f′(u₀) u_x = vDu_xx should be well posed in L² uniformly in v as v → 0. Previous examples of inadmissible viscosity matrices are accounted for through violation of the stability criterion.