Curve shortening-straightening flow for non-closed planar curves with infinite length (Q2436993)

The authors consider the shortening-straightening flow \[ \partial_t \gamma =(-2\partial^2_s \kappa -\kappa^3 + \lambda^2 \kappa)\nu \] for curves in \(\mathbb{R}^2\), where \(\lambda\neq 0\) is a given constant, \(s\) the arc-length parameter, \(\kappa\) the curvature of the curve, \(\nu\) is the unit normal pointing the curvature direction. The initial curve of the flow is a non-closed curve \(\gamma(x,0)=\gamma_0(x)=(\phi_0(x),\psi_0(x))\) of curvature \(\kappa_0\) and infinite length, satisfying the conditions \(|\gamma'_0(x)|=1\), \(\lim_{x\to \infty}\phi_0(x)=\infty\), \(\lim_{x\to -\infty}\phi_0(x)=-\infty\), \(\lim_{|x|\to \infty}\phi'_0(x)=1\), \(\psi_0(x)=O(x^{-\alpha})\), for some \(\alpha >1/2\) as \(|x|\to \infty\), and such that the first derivative of \(\psi_0\) and all derivatives of \(\kappa_0\) are in \(L^2(\mathbb{R})\). Stationary curves for the functional \(E({\gamma})=\lambda^2\mathcal{L}(\gamma)+\mathcal{E}(\gamma)\), where \(\mathcal{L}\) is the length of the curve and \(\mathcal{E}\) the total squared curvature, satisfy the equation \(2\partial^2_s {\kappa} +{\kappa}^3 - \lambda^2{\kappa}=0\), and the flow equation is just the steepest descent flow for \(E\). This flow has been studied before for the case of closed curves. In the main theorem the authors prove that there exists a long time solution \(\gamma(x,t)\) for \(x\in \mathbb{R}\) and \(t\in [0, \infty)\), and for some sequences \(t_j\to \infty\), \(p_j\in \mathbb{R}^2\) the sequence of curves \(\gamma(\cdot, t_j)-p_j\) converge to a stationary one. They overcome the difficulty given by the unboundedness of the functional \({E}\) by considering the same flow for curves defined on \([0, L]\), with initial-boundary value \(\gamma(0,t)=(0,0)\), \(\gamma(L,t)=(R,0)\), \(\kappa(0,t)=\kappa(L,t)=0\), where \(L\) and \(R\) are given positive constants, and show the existence of a unique solution for any time \(t>0\). The later proof relies on a suitable reformulation as a fourth-order quasilinear parabolic equation and uses the contraction mapping principle to derive short time existence. Long time existence is obtained by deriving evolution equations for the line element and of all derivatives of the curvature of \(\gamma(x, t)\) and a consequent \(L^2_s\)-estimate of \(\kappa\) (and all its derivatives) obtaining an upper bound in terms of \(R\), \(\lambda^2\), the \(L^2\)-norm of initial \(k_0\) on \([0,L]\) and the length of \(\gamma_0\) in the same interval. Estimates of the local length play a role in this long time existence. The convergence to a stationary solution of the flow for some sequence \(t_i\to \infty\) with initial-boundary value is proved on each \([0,L]\). The non-compact case is obtained considering approximate solutions taking cut-off functions \(\eta_r\) with compact support in \([0, r]\), and corresponding initial curves \((\phi_0(x), \eta_r(x)\psi_0(x))\) on \([-r,r]\), and convergence to a stationary curve \(\gamma_r\) for some sequence \(t_i\to \infty\). Uniform boundedness of the \(L^2_s\)-norm of the curvature (and any of its derivatives) of these approximated curves is verified, and the same for the local length. Applying the Arzelà-Ascoli theorem to the equi-continuous family \(\gamma_r\), \(r>0\), a sequence \(\gamma_{r_j}\) converges to \(\gamma\) defined on \(\mathbb{R}\times [0, \infty)\) satisfying the flow equation. Then, for some sequence \(t_j\) and points \(p_j\in \mathbb{R}^2\), \(\gamma(\cdot, t_j)-p_j\) converges to a stationary curve \(\hat{\gamma}\) with finite \(\mathcal{E}(\hat{\kappa})\). Finally the authors classify the stationary solutions. Furthermore they show that they are either a line or a borderline elastica. The later case holds when the index \(i(\gamma)=\int_{\gamma}xds\) (that is invariant for any \(t>0\)) is not zero.