We compare the solutions of two Poisson problems in a spherical shell with Robin boundary conditions, one with given data, and one where the data have been cap symmetrized. When the Robin parameters are nonnegative, we show that the solution to the symmetrized problem has larger convex means. Sending one of the Robin parameters to $+\infty $ , we obtain mixed Robin/Dirichlet comparison results in shells. We prove similar results on balls and prove a comparison principle on generalized cylinders with mixed Robin/Neumann boundary conditions.

In this paper, we study some properties of the generalized Fokker–Planck equation induced by the time-changed fractional Ornstein–Uhlenbeck process. First of all, we exploit some sufficient conditions to show that a mild solution of such equation is actually a classical solution. Then, we discuss an isolation result for mild solutions. Finally, we prove the weak maximum principle for strong solutions of the aforementioned equation and then a uniqueness result.

In this paper, we study a dissipative systems modelling electrohydrodynamics in incompressible viscous fluids. The system consists of the Navier–Stokes equations coupled with a classical Poisson–Nernst–Planck equations. In the three-dimensional case, we establish a global regularity criteria in terms of the middle eigenvalue of the strain tensor in the framework of the anisotropic Lorentz spaces for local smooth solution. The proof relies on the identity for entropy growth introduced by Miller in the Arch. Ration. Mech. Anal. [16].

In this study, we continue our study of the Cauchy problem associated with the Brinkman equations [see (1.1) and (1.2) below] which model fluid flow in certain types of porous media. Here, we will consider the flow in the upper half-space

\[ \mathbb{R}_{+}^{3}=\left\{\left(x,y,z\right) \in\mathbb{R}^{3}\left\vert z\geqslant 0\right.\right\}, \]

$z=0$

This paper is concerned with the global regularity problem on the micropolar Rayleigh-Bénard problem with only velocity dissipation in $\mathbb {R}^{d}$ with $d=2\ or\ 3$. By fully exploiting the special structure of the system, introducing two combined quantities and using the technique of Littlewood-Paley decomposition, we establish the global regularity of solutions to this system in $\mathbb {R}^{2}$. Moreover, we obtain the global regularity for fractional hyperviscosity case in $\mathbb {R}^{3}$ by employing various techniques including energy methods, the regularization of generalized heat operators on the Fourier frequency localized functions and logarithmic Sobolev interpolation inequalities.

In this study, we investigate the intial value problem (IVP) for a time-fractional fourth-order equation with nonlinear source terms. More specifically, we consider the time-fractional biharmonic with exponential nonlinearity and the time-fractional Cahn–Hilliard equation. By using the Fourier transform concept, the generalized formula for the mild solution as well as the smoothing effects of resolvent operators are proved. For the IVP associated with the first one, by using the Orlicz space with the function $\Xi (z)={\textrm {e}}^{|z|^{p}}-1$ and some embeddings between it and the usual Lebesgue spaces, we prove that the solution is a global-in-time solution or it shall blow up in a finite time if the initial value is regular. In the case of singular initial data, the local-in-time/global-in-time existence and uniqueness are derived. Also, the regularity of the mild solution is investigated. For the IVP associated with the second one, some modifications to the generalized formula are made to deal with the nonlinear term. We also establish some important estimates for the derivatives of resolvent operators, they are the basis for using the Picard sequence to prove the local-in-time existence of the solution.

We consider patterns formed in a two-dimensional thin film on a planar substrate with a Derjaguin disjoining pressure and periodic wettability stripes. We rigorously clarify some of the results obtained numerically by Honisch et al. [Langmuir 31: 10618–10631, 2015] and embed them in the general theory of thin-film equations. For the case of constant wettability, we elucidate the change in the global structure of branches of steady-state solutions as the average film thickness and the surface tension are varied. Specifically we find, by using methods of local bifurcation theory and the continuation software package AUTO, both nucleation and metastable regimes. We discuss admissible forms of spatially non-homogeneous disjoining pressure, arguing for a form that differs from the one used by Honisch et al., and study the dependence of the steady-state solutions on the wettability contrast in that case.

This paper is concerned with a prey–predator model with population flux by attractive transition. Our previous paper (Oeda and Kuto, 2018, Nonlinear Anal. RWA, 44, 589–615) obtained a bifurcation branch (connected set) of coexistence steady states which connects two semitrivial solutions. In Oeda and Kuto (2018, Nonlinear Anal. RWA, 44, 589–615), we also showed that any positive steady-state approaches a positive solution of either of two limiting systems, and moreover, one of the limiting systems is an equal diffusive competition model. This paper obtains the bifurcation structure of positive solutions to the other limiting system. Moreover, this paper implies that the global bifurcation branch of coexistence states consists of two parts, one of which is a simple curve running in a tubular domain near the set of positive solutions to the equal diffusive competition model, the other of which is a connected set characterized by positive solutions to the other limiting system.

This paper deals with the following fractional elliptic equation with critical exponent

\[ \begin{cases} \displaystyle (-\Delta )^{s}u=u_{+}^{2_{s}^{*}-1}+\lambda u-\bar{\nu}\varphi_{1}, & \text{in}\ \Omega,\\ \displaystyle u=0, & \text{in}\ {{\mathfrak R}}^{N}\backslash \Omega, \end{cases}\]

$\lambda$

$\bar {\nu }\in {{\mathfrak R}}$

$s\in (0,1)$

$2^{*}_{s}=({2N}/{N-2s})\,(N>2s)$

$(-\Delta )^{s}$

$\Omega \subset {{\mathfrak R}}^{N}$

$\varphi _{1}$

$u=0$

${{\mathfrak R}}^{N}\setminus \Omega$

$\lambda$

$\bar {\nu }$

$|\bar \nu | \to \infty$

We consider a system of reaction–diffusion equations including chemotaxis terms and coming out of the modelling of multiple sclerosis. The global existence of strong solutions to this system in any dimension is proved, and it is also shown that the solution is bounded uniformly in time. Finally, a nonlinear stability result is obtained when the chemotaxis term is not too big. We also perform numerical simulations to show the appearance of Turing patterns when the chemotaxis term is large.

In this study, we are concerned with the asymptotic stability towards a rarefaction wave of the solution to an outflow problem for the Navier-Stokes Korteweg equations of a compressible fluid in the half space. We assume that the space-asymptotic states and the boundary data satisfy some conditions so that the time-asymptotic state of this solution is a rarefaction wave. Then we show that the rarefaction wave is non-linearly stable, as time goes to infinity, provided that the strength of the wave is weak and the initial perturbation is small. The proof is mainly based on $L^{2}$-energy method and some time-decay estimates in $L^{p}$-norm for the smoothed rarefaction wave.

We consider the explicit solution to the axisymmetric diffusion equation. We recast the solution in the form of a Mellin inversion formula, and outline a method to compute a formula for $u(r,t)$ as a series using the Cauchy residue theorem. As a consequence, we are able to represent the solution to the axisymmetric diffusion equation as a rapidly converging series.

We consider a model for the dynamics of growing cell populations with heterogeneous mobility and proliferation rate. The cell phenotypic state is described by a continuous structuring variable and the evolution of the local cell population density function (i.e. the cell phenotypic distribution at each spatial position) is governed by a non-local advection–reaction–diffusion equation. We report on the results of numerical simulations showing that, in the case where the cell mobility is bounded, compactly supported travelling fronts emerge. More mobile phenotypic variants occupy the front edge, whereas more proliferative phenotypic variants are selected at the back of the front. In order to explain such numerical results, we carry out formal asymptotic analysis of the model equation using a Hamilton–Jacobi approach. In summary, we show that the locally dominant phenotypic trait (i.e. the maximum point of the local cell population density function along the phenotypic dimension) satisfies a generalised Burgers’ equation with source term, we construct travelling-front solutions of such transport equation and characterise the corresponding minimal speed. Moreover, we show that, when the cell mobility is unbounded, front edge acceleration and formation of stretching fronts may occur. We briefly discuss the implications of our results in the context of glioma growth.

We describe a functional framework suitable to the analysis of the Cahn–Hilliard equation on an evolving surface whose evolution is assumed to be given a priori. The model is derived from balance laws for an order parameter with an associated Cahn–Hilliard energy functional and we establish well-posedness for general regular potentials, satisfying some prescribed growth conditions, and for two singular non-linearities – the thermodynamically relevant logarithmic potential and a double-obstacle potential. We identify, for the singular potentials, necessary conditions on the initial data and the evolution of the surfaces for global-in-time existence of solutions, which arise from the fact that integrals of solutions are preserved over time, and prove well-posedness for initial data on a suitable set of admissible initial conditions. We then briefly describe an alternative derivation leading to a model that instead preserves a weighted integral of the solution and explain how our arguments can be adapted in order to obtain global-in-time existence without restrictions on the initial conditions. Some illustrative examples and further research directions are given in the final sections.

We derive and numerically implement various asymptotic approximations for the lowest or principal eigenvalue of the Laplacian with a periodic arrangement of localised traps of small \[\mathcal{O}(\varepsilon )\] spatial extent that are centred at the lattice points of an arbitrary Bravais lattice in \[{\mathbb{R}^2}\]. The expansion of this principal eigenvalue proceeds in powers of \[\nu \equiv - 1/\log (\varepsilon {d_c})\], where dc is the logarithmic capacitance of the trap set. An explicit three-term approximation for this principal eigenvalue is derived using strong localised perturbation theory, with the coefficients in this series evaluated numerically by using an explicit formula for the source-neutral periodic Green’s function and its regular part. Moreover, a transcendental equation for an improved approximation to the principal eigenvalue, which effectively sums all the logarithmic terms in powers of v, is derived in terms of the regular part of the periodic Helmholtz Green’s function. By using an Ewald summation technique to first obtain a rapidly converging infinite series representation for this regular part, a simple Newton iteration scheme on the transcendental equation is implemented to numerically evaluate the improved ‘log-summed’ approximation to the principal eigenvalue. From a numerical computation of the PDE eigenvalue problem defined on the fundamental Wigner–Seitz (WS) cell for the lattice, it is shown that the three-term asymptotic approximation for the principal eigenvalue agrees well with the numerical result only for a rather small trap radius. In contrast, the log-summed asymptotic result provides a very close approximation to the principal eigenvalue even when the trap radius is only moderately small. For a circular trap, the first few transcendental correction terms that further improves the log-summed approximation for the principal eigenvalue are derived. Finally, it is shown numerically that, amongst all Bravais lattices with a fixed area of the primitive cell, the principal eigenvalue is maximised for a regular hexagonal arrangement of traps.

We study the multiplicity and concentration of complex-valued solutions for a fractional magnetic Schrödinger equation involving a scalar continuous electric potential satisfying a local condition and a continuous nonlinearity with subcritical growth. The main results are obtained by applying a penalization technique, generalized Nehari manifold method and Ljusternik–Schnirelman theory. We also prove a Kato's inequality for the fractional magnetic Laplacian which we believe to be useful in the study of other fractional magnetic problems.

We consider the boundary Hardy–Hénon equation

\[ -\Delta u=(1-|x|)^{\alpha} u^{p},\ \ x\in B_1(0), \]

$B_1(0)\subset \mathbb {R}^{N}$

$(N\geq 3)$

$1$

$0$

$p>0$

$\alpha \in \mathbb {R}$

$0< p<({N+2})/({N-2})$

$\alpha \leq -2$

$p>1$

$\alpha >-2$

$1< p<({N+2})/({N-2})$

$0< p\leq 1$

$\alpha \leq -2$

$0< p<1$

$\alpha >-2$

The Neumann–Poincaré (NP) operator, a singular integral operator on the boundary of a domain, naturally appears when one solves a conductivity transmission problem via the boundary integral formulation. Recently, a series expression of the NP operator was developed in two dimensions based on geometric function theory [34]. In this paper, we investigate geometric properties of composite materials using this series expansion. In particular, we obtain explicit formulas for the polarisation tensor and the effective conductivity for an inclusion or a periodic array of inclusions of arbitrary shape with extremal conductivity, in terms of the associated exterior conformal mapping. Also, we observe by numerical computations that the spectrum of the NP operator has a monotonic behaviour with respect to the shape deformation of the inclusion. Additionally, we derive inequality relations of the coefficients of the Riemann mapping of an arbitrary Lipschitz domain using the properties of the polarisation tensor corresponding to the domain.

This work studies functional difference equations of the second order with a potential belonging to a special class of meromorphic functions. The equations depend on a spectral parameter. Consideration of this type of equations is motivated by applications in diffraction theory and by construction of eigenfunctions for the Laplace operator in angular domains. In particular, such eigenfunctions describe eigenoscillations of acoustic waves in angular domains with ‘semitransparent’ boundary conditions. For negative values of the spectral parameter, we study essential and discrete spectrum of the equations and describe properties of the corresponding solutions. The study is based on the reduction of the functional difference equations to integral equations with a symmetric kernel. A sufficient condition is formulated for the potential that ensures existence of the discrete spectrum. The obtained results are applied for studying the behaviour of eigenfunctions for the Laplace operator in adjacent angular domains with the Robin-type boundary conditions on their common boundary. At infinity, the eigenfunctions vanish exponentially as was expected. However, the rate of such decay depends on the observation direction. In particular, in a vicinity of some directions, the regime of decay is switched from one to another and such asymptotic behaviour is described by a Fresnel-type integral.

The classical half-line Robin problem for the heat equation may be solved via a spatial Fourier transform method. In this work, we study the problem in which the static Robin condition $$bq(0,t) + {q_x}(0,t) = 0$$ is replaced with a dynamic Robin condition; $$b = b(t)$$ is allowed to vary in time. Applications include convective heating by a corrosive liquid. We present a solution representation and justify its validity, via an extension of the Fokas transform method. We show how to reduce the problem to a variable coefficient fractional linear ordinary differential equation for the Dirichlet boundary value. We implement the fractional Frobenius method to solve this equation and justify that the error in the approximate solution of the original problem converges appropriately. We also demonstrate an argument for existence and unicity of solutions to the original dynamic Robin problem for the heat equation. Finally, we extend these results to linear evolution equations of arbitrary spatial order on the half-line, with arbitrary linear dynamic boundary conditions.