Sequential and continuum bifurcations in degenerate elliptic equations

We examine the bifurcations to positive and sign-changing solutions of degenerate elliptic equations. In the problems we study, which do not represent Fredholm operators, we show that there is a critical parameter value at which an infinity of bifurcations occur from the trivial solution. Moreover, a bifurcation occurs at each point in some unbounded interval in parameter space. We apply our results to non-monotone eigenvalue problems, degenerate semi-linear elliptic equations, boundary value differential-algebraic equations and fully non-linear elliptic equations

A complete characterisation of local existence for semilinear heat equations in Lebesgue spaces

We consider the scalar semilinear heat equation ut−Δu=f(u), where f:[0,∞)→[0,∞) is continuous and non-decreasing but need not be convex. We completely characterise those functions f for which the equation has a local solution bounded in Lq(Ω) for all non-negative initial data u0∈Lq(Ω), when Ω⊂Rd is a bounded domain with Dirichlet boundary conditions. For q∈(1,∞) this holds if and only if limsups→∞s−(1+2q/d)f(s

Convergence to equilibrium in degenerate parabolic equations with delay

© 2012 Elsevier Ltd In [11], Busenberg & Huang (1996) showed that small positive equilibria can undergo supercritical Hopf bifurcation in a delay-logistic reaction–diffusion equation with Dirichlet boundary conditions. Consequently, stable spatially inhomogeneous time-periodic solutions exist. Previously in [12] Badii, Diaz & Tesei (1987) considered a similar logistic-type delay-diffusion equation, but differing in two important respects: firstly by the inclusion of nonlinear degenerate diffusion of so-called porous medium type, and secondly by the inclusion of an additional ‘dominating instantaneous negative feedback’ (where terms local in time majorize the delay terms, in some sense). Sufficient conditions were given ensuring convergence of non-negative solutions to a unique positive equilibrium. A natural question to ask, and one which motivated the present work, is: can one still ensure convergence to equilibrium in delay-logistic diffusion equations in the presence of nonlinear degenerate diffusion, but in the absence of dominating instantaneous negative feedback? The present paper considers this question and provides sufficient conditions to answer in the affirmative. In fact the results are much stronger, establishing global convergence for a much wider class of problems which generalize the porous medium diffusion and delay-logistic terms to larger classes of nonlinearities. Furthermore the results obtained are independent of the size of the delay

The ‘heritagisation’ of the British seaside resort: The rise of the ‘old penny’ arcade.

Amusement arcades have long been a key component of the British seaside resort. For almost a century, they enjoyed popularity and success and became established as a quintessential feature of the British seaside holiday. However, the advent of home-based video games along with recent gambling legislation has led to a decline of the seaside amusement arcade sector. Arcades gained a reputation as unsavoury places and their appearance and fortunes often mirrored those of the resorts in which they were located. However, over the past decade, a new variant of the seaside amusement arcade has appeared, featuring mechanical machines working on pre-decimal currency. Such ‘old penny arcades’ frequently describe themselves as museums or heritage centres and they offer an experience based on a nostalgic affection for the ‘traditional’ seaside holiday. They have appeared in the context of an increasing interest in the heritage of the British seaside resort and constitute one element of the ‘heritagisation’ of such resorts. This paper argues that such arcades can be important elements of strategies to reposition and rebrand resorts for the heritage tourism market

The flow of a DAE near a singular equilibrium

We extend the differential-algebraic equation (DAE) taxonomy by assuming that the linearization of a DAE about a singular equilibrium has a particular index-2 Kronecker normal form. A Lyapunov-Schmidt procedure is used to reduce the DAE to a quasilinear normal form which is shown to posses quasi-invariant manifolds which intersect the singularity. In turn, this provides solutions of the DAE which pass through the singularity

Transversality and separation of zeros in second order differential equations

Sufficient conditions on the non-linearity f are given which ensure that non-trivial solutions of second order differential equations of the form Lu = f(t, u) have a finite number of transverse zeros in a given finite time interval. We also obtain a priori lower bounds on the separation of zeros of solutions. In particular our results apply to non-Lipschitz non-linearities. Applications to non-linear porous medium equations are considered, yielding information on the existence and strict positivity of equilibrium solutions in some important classes of equations

Finite time extinction in nonlinear diffusion equations

We consider a class of degenerate diffusion equations where the nonlinearity is assumed to be singular (non-Lipschitz) at zero. It is shown that solutions with compactly supported initial data become identically zero in finite time. Such extinction follows by comparison with newly constructed finite travelling waves connecting two stable equilibria. © 2004 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved

Trajectories of a DAE near a pseudo-equilibrium

We consider a class of differential-algebraic equations (DAEs) defined by analytic nonlinearities and study its singular solutions. The main assumption used is that the linearization of the DAE represents a Kronecker index-2 matrix pencil and that the constraint manifold has a quadratic fold along its singularity. From these assumptions we obtain a normal form for the DAE where the presence of the singularity and its effects on the dynamics of the problem are made explicit in the form of a quasi-linear differential equation. Subsequently, two distinct types of singular points are identified through which there pass exactly two analytic solutions: pseudo-nodes and pseudo-saddles. We also demonstrate that a singular point called a pseudo-node supports an uncountable infinity of solutions which are not analytic in general. Moreover, akin to known results in the literature for DAEs with singular equilibria, a degenerate singularity is found through which there passes one analytic solution such that the singular point in question is contained within a quasi-invariant manifold of solutions. We call this type of singularity a pseudo-centre and it provides not only a manifold of solutions which intersects the singularity, but also a local flow on that manifold which solves the DAE