Improved energy bounds for Schr\"odinger operators

Given a potential $V$ and the associated Schr\"odinger operator $-\Delta+V$, we consider the problem of providing sharp upper and lower bound on the energy of the operator. It is known that if for example $V$ or $V^{-1}$ enjoys suitable summability properties, the problem has a positive answer. In this paper we show that the corresponding isoperimetric-like inequalities can be improved by means of quantitative stability estimates.Comment: 31 page

Wealth distribution and collective knowledge. A Boltzmann approach

We introduce and discuss a nonlinear kinetic equation of Boltzmann type which describes the influence of knowledge in the evolution of wealth in a system of agents which interact through the binary trades introduced in Cordier, Pareschi, Toscani, J. Stat. Phys. 2005. The trades, which include both saving propensity and the risks of the market, are here modified in the risk and saving parameters, which now are assumed to depend on the personal degree of knowledge. The numerical simulations show that the presence of knowledge has the potential to produce a class of wealthy agents and to account for a larger proportion of wealth inequality.Comment: 21 pages, 10 figures. arXiv admin note: text overlap with arXiv:q-bio/0312018 by other author

Robust Model Predictive Control via Scenario Optimization

This paper discusses a novel probabilistic approach for the design of robust model predictive control (MPC) laws for discrete-time linear systems affected by parametric uncertainty and additive disturbances. The proposed technique is based on the iterated solution, at each step, of a finite-horizon optimal control problem (FHOCP) that takes into account a suitable number of randomly extracted scenarios of uncertainty and disturbances, followed by a specific command selection rule implemented in a receding horizon fashion. The scenario FHOCP is always convex, also when the uncertain parameters and disturbance belong to non-convex sets, and irrespective of how the model uncertainty influences the system's matrices. Moreover, the computational complexity of the proposed approach does not depend on the uncertainty/disturbance dimensions, and scales quadratically with the control horizon. The main result in this paper is related to the analysis of the closed loop system under receding-horizon implementation of the scenario FHOCP, and essentially states that the devised control law guarantees constraint satisfaction at each step with some a-priori assigned probability p, while the system's state reaches the target set either asymptotically, or in finite time with probability at least p. The proposed method may be a valid alternative when other existing techniques, either deterministic or stochastic, are not directly usable due to excessive conservatism or to numerical intractability caused by lack of convexity of the robust or chance-constrained optimization problem.Comment: This manuscript is a preprint of a paper accepted for publication in the IEEE Transactions on Automatic Control, with DOI: 10.1109/TAC.2012.2203054, and is subject to IEEE copyright. The copy of record will be available at http://ieeexplore.ieee.or

Dissipative scale effects in strain-gradient plasticity: the case of simple shear

We analyze dissipative scale effects within a one-dimensional theory, developed in [L. Anand et al. (2005) J. Mech. Phys. Solids 53], which describes plastic flow in a thin strip undergoing simple shear. We give a variational characterization of the {\emph{ yield (shear) stress}} --- the threshold for the inset of plastic flow --- and we use this characterization, together with results from [M. Amar et al. (2011) J. Math. Anal. Appl. 397], to obtain an explicit relation between the yield stress and the height of the strip. The relation we obtain confirms that thinner specimens are stronger, in the sense that they display higher yield stress

Convergence of the regularized short pulse equation to the short pulse one

We consider the regularized short-pulse equation, which contains nonlinear dis- persive effects. We prove that as the diffusion parameter tends to zero, the solutions of the dispersive equation converge to discontinuous weak solutions of the short-pulse one. The proof relies on deriving suitable a priori estimates together with an application of the compensated compactness method in the Lp setting

Convergence of the Ostrovsky equation to the Ostrovsky-Hunter one

We consider the Ostrovsky equation, which contains nonlinear dispersive effects. We prove that as the diffusion parameter tend to zero, the solutions of the dispersive equation converge to discontinuous weak solutions of the Ostrovsky-Hunter equation. The proof relies on deriving suitable a priori estimates together with an application of the compensated compactness method in the L^p setting

Oleinik type estimates for the Ostrovsky-Hunter eequation

The Ostrovsky-Hunter equation provides a model for small-amplitude long waves in a rotating fluid of finite depth. It is a nonlinear evolution equation. In this paper we study the well-posedness for the Cauchy problem associated to this equation within a class of bounded discontinuous solutions. We show that we can replace the Kruzkov-type entropy inequalities by an Oleinik-type estimate and prove uniqueness via a nonlocal adjoint problem. An implication is that a shock wave in an entropy weak solution to the Ostrovsky-Hunter equation is admissible only if it jumps down in value (like the inviscid Burgers equation)

Wellposedness results for the short pulse equation

The short pulse equation provides a model for the propagation of ultra-short light pulses in silica optical fibers. It is a nonlinear evolution equation. In this paper the wellposedness of bounded solutions for the homogeneous initial boundary value problem and the Cauchy problem associated to this equation are studied.Comment: arXiv admin note: text overlap with arXiv:1310.701