Wave Packet Pseudomodes of Variable Coefficient Differential Operators

Abstract

The pseudospectra of nonselfadjoint linear ordinary differential operators with variable coefficients are considered. It is shown that when a certain winding number or twist condition is satisfied, closely related to Hörmander's commutator condition for partial differential equations, \varepsilon-pseudoeigenfunctions of such operators for exponentially small values of \varepsilon exist in the form of localized wave packets. In contrast to related results of Davies and of Dencker, Sjöstrand, and Zworski, the symbol need not be smooth