The Cauchy problem for Kawahara equation in Sobolev spaces with low regularity

This paper is devoted to studying the initial‐value problem of the Kawahara equation. By establishing some crucial bilinear estimates related to the Bourgain spaces X_{s, b}(R²) introduced by Bourgain and homogeneous Bourgain spaces, which is defined in this paper and using I‐method as well as L² conservation law, we show that this fifth‐order shallow water wave equation is globally well‐posed for the initial data in the Sobolev spaces H^s(R) with $s{>}-frac{63}{58}$. Copyright © 2010 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.