Approximation of controls for linear wave equations: a first order mixed formulation (Q2175631)

The work is devoted to the numerical solution of null-controllability for the wave equation by means of a first order equivalent formulation. The paper is organized as follows. First, the authors prove the observability inequality for a mild solution of the backward problem. Then, the dual problem, involving the Lagrange multiplier variable is analyzed. The authors then exploit some properties of the multipliers to derive a stabilized mixed formulation \textit{à la\/} Barbosa-Hughes whose solution coinsides with the initial mixed formulation. After the theoretical analysis of the problem, the authors introduce a conformal \(H^1\)-approximation of the mixed formulation leading to error estimates in the one-dimensional case. The final two sections are devoted to results on numerical experiments and to some perspectives.