Adaptive finite element-boundary element solution of boundary value problems (Q1298788)

The author describes an adaptive method to obtain finite element approximations to solutions of boundary value problems already solved with a Galerkin boundary element (BE) method. Via representation formulas the BE solution provides a smooth approximation of the solution inside the domain. The FE approximations are the piecewise linear interpolants on some triangulation to this smooth function. The convergence of these interpolants is controlled by the error of the BE solution from which a strategy for adaptive mesh refinement in the domain is derived. Corresponding error estimates for the FE approximation are given which use negative Sobolev norm error estimates for the BE solution. Results concerning the error estimation and numerical complexity are confirmed by a numerical test for Laplace's equation.