Entire solutions originating from multiple fronts of an epidemic model with nonlocal dispersal and bistable nonlinearity (Q1784825)

In this paper, the system \[ \begin{cases} \partial_t u_1 =d\mathcal{J}(u_1) -u_1+\alpha u_2\\ \partial_t u_2=-\beta u_2+g(u_1) \end{cases} \] in $\mathbb{R}^2$ is studied, where $d,\alpha,\beta>0$ are constants, $\mathcal{J}$ denotes a nonlocal dispersal operator, and $g$ is a increasing function of class $C^2$ from $[0,\infty[$ to $[0,1[$ such that $g(0)=0$, $g'(0)<\beta/\alpha$, $g(u)\rightarrow 1$ as $u$ tends to infinity, and there are constants $u_0>0$ and $\gamma > \beta/\alpha$ such that $g''(u)>0$ for $u\in ]0,u_0[$, $g''(u)<0$ for $u>u_0$, and $g(u)=\gamma u$ has a unique positive root. This system is related to epidemic models, with the unknowns $u_1$ and $u_2$ representing the spatial densities of the infectious agent and the infective human population, respectively, the parameter $d$ representing the diffusion coefficient of the infectious agent, and $\alpha$ and $\beta$ being rescaling parameters. First, the authors prove that, for any $\theta_1,\theta_2\in\mathbb{R}$ and $c>0$, the problem under study admits a unique Lyapunov stable solution \(U=(u_1,u_2)\), which continuously depends on the shift parameters $\theta_1,\theta_2$, satisfying \[ \lim_{t\rightarrow -\infty}\left[ \sup_{x\leq 0}\|U(x,t)-\Phi(-x+ct+\theta_2)\|+ \sup_{x\geq 0}\|U(x,t)-\Phi(x+ct+\theta_1)\| \right]=0, \] where $\Phi=(\phi_1,\phi_2)$ is the traveling wave front, which is an increasing solution to the ODE system \[ \begin{cases} c\phi'_1 =d\mathcal{J}(\phi_1) -\phi_1+\alpha \phi_2\\ c\phi'_2=-\beta \phi_2+g(\phi_1) \end{cases} \] such that $\Phi(-\infty)=E_0$ and $\Phi(+\infty)=E_2$, with $E_0:=(0,0)$ and $E_2:=(u_{21}^*,u_{22}^*)$ denoting the stable equilibria. The proof relies on constructing a pair of appropriate super- and sub-solutions of the problem under study. Second, the authors build two different types of entire solutions, under the existence of the bistable traveling front $\Phi$ connecting the stable equilibria $E_0$ and $E_2$, with speed $c>0$, and two monostable traveling fronts $\Phi_1$ and $\Phi_2$ connecting the unstable equilibrium $E_1:=(u_{11}^*,u_{12}^*)$ and $E_0$ with speed $c_1\leq c_1^*<0$, and $E_2$ with speed $c_2\geq c_2^*>0$, respectively, and some additional assumptions on $g$. Namely, \textit{Type I} solutions behave, as $t\rightarrow -\infty$, like \(\Phi(-x+ct+\theta)\) and \(\Phi_2 (x+c_2t+\theta)\) coming from opposite directions and like \(\Phi_1 (x+c_1t+\theta)\) between these two fronts, merging and converging to the equilibrium $E_2$; and \textit{Type II} solutions behave, as $t\rightarrow -\infty$, like \(\Phi(-x+ct+\theta'_1 )\) and \(\Phi_1 (-x+c_1t -\theta'_2 )\) coming from opposite directions and like \(\Phi_1 (x+c_1t+\theta'_1)\) between these two fronts, merging and converging to the front \(\Phi ( -x+ct+\theta'_3)\). Here \(\theta\) and \(\theta'_i\) (\(i=1,2,3\)) are constants. Finally, a smooth property and a positive time-derivative estimate for the solution $U$ are obtained under the additional assumption \(\sup_{u\in ]0,u_{21}^*[}g'(u)<\beta (1+d)/\alpha\).