Causality and viscoelastic boundary value problems (Q1072754)

The principle of causality, for a given system, is related to the analytic structure of the Fourier transform of functions characterizing the system. In the case of linear viscoelastic boundary value problems, these are the Green's functions of the problem. For a certain class of noninertial problems, the causal property of the Green's functions is derived from more elementary constraints. Also, for the tearing mode, semi-infinite, inertial, moving crack problem, it is shown that certain results, already given in the literature, can be derived in a natural and simple way, with the aid of this principle.