Local equivalence problem for a second order complete scalar system of partial differencial equations with \(n\) independent variables (Q2475499)

This paper studies scalar systems of partial differential equations of the form \[ \frac{\partial^2 u}{\partial x^i \partial x^j} = F_{ij}\left(x,u,\frac{\partial{u}}{\partial{x}}\right), \] \(i,j=1, \dots, n\), with \(n>1\), which are involutive in the sense of the Cartan-Kähler theorem. The author writes down explicit conditions that are satisfied just when such a system is equivalent to \[ \frac{\partial^2 u}{\partial x^i \partial x^j} = 0 \] under a change of variables \((X,U)=(X(x,u),U(x,u))\). The conditions are uncovered by carrying out Cartan's method of equivalence on these systems of equations. The result of the equivalence calculation is a parabolic Cartan geometry for such differential equations. The conditions uncovered are written explicitly in coordinates, but also described in terms of the parabolic geometry. The author mentions that the result was already known to \textit{M. Hachtroudi} in 1937 [Les espaces d'éléments à connexion projective normale. Paris: Hermann (1937; Zbl 0019.30601; JFM 63.1249.01)], apparently found using a differential technique. The author explains clearly how the problem is motivated by Segre's approach to CR-geometry of real analytic pseudoconvex hypersurfaces. For a system of partial differential equations arising from a CR-hypersurface, one can derive the Cartan connection of this paper from the Chern-Moser-Tanaka Cartan connection. Joël Merker's paper ``Explicit differential characterization of PDE systems pointwise equivalent to \(Y_{X^{j_1} X^{j_2}}\)'' provides a different approach to the same problem, along the lines of Sophus Lie's work. Theorems 5.1 and 5.3 are not quite correct as stated; the symmetry group should be a symmetry Lie algebra, and the equivalence should be only local.