Hyperbolic and Viscous Conservation Laws (Q4937704)

This small book contains both an introduction to the topic of conservation laws and a discussion of recent results. After introducing some basic concepts as shocks, rarefaction waves and entropy solution the first, ``hyperbolic'', part focuses on the analysis of wave interactions. The Glimm existence theorem for initial data of small total variation is demonstrated in detail. Wave-tracing is then used to prove results on the regularity and on the large-time behavior of solution. The second, ``viscous'', part deals mainly with the stability of nonlinear waves. Pointwise estimates involving Green functions are derived to show that for appropriate initial data any convex scalar conservation law behaves like Burgers equation. For Burgers equation stability of both shock and rarefaction waves are proved. For systems of conservation laws perturbations of the initial data give rise to diffusion waves. From the study of these diffusion waves a stability result for shock waves in systems of conservation laws is derived. The book is a self-contained and nevertheless detailed mathematical introduction to this topic from the viewpoint of wave phenomena and wave interactions.