Homogenization structures and applications. I (Q1866641)

In broad terms, homogenization theory concerns the study of partial differential equations whose coefficients are of the form \(a_\alpha(x,{x\over\varepsilon})\), \(x\in\mathbb{R}^N\), \(\varepsilon> 0\). These equations describe a sample of an inhomogeneous medium and, by passing to the limit as \(\varepsilon\to 0\), an understanding of macroscopic behaviour may be obtained. In the classical case, it is assumed that the coefficients are periodic, that is, there is a periodic structure or, more generally, an almost periodic structure. The goal of this paper is to allow more general structures, called homogenization structures. Essentially, these are (equivalence clsses of) certain multiplicative groups of bounded, continuous, ponderable functions on \(\mathbb{R}^N\). Ponderable functions have a mean value in an appropriate sense. Of primary importance are homogenization algebras which are \(C^*\)-algebras of ponderable functions. An essential tool is the classical Gel'fand representation theory.