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In mathematics, in the field of
differential equation In mathematics, a differential equation is an equation that relates one or more unknown functions and their derivatives. In applications, the functions generally represent physical quantities, the derivatives represent their rates of change, an ...
s, a boundary value problem is a
differential equation In mathematics, a differential equation is an equation that relates one or more unknown functions and their derivatives. In applications, the functions generally represent physical quantities, the derivatives represent their rates of change, an ...
together with a set of additional constraints, called the boundary conditions. A solution to a boundary value problem is a solution to the differential equation which also satisfies the boundary conditions. Boundary value problems arise in several branches of physics as any physical differential equation will have them. Problems involving the wave equation, such as the determination of normal modes, are often stated as boundary value problems. A large class of important boundary value problems are the Sturm–Liouville problems. The analysis of these problems involves the eigenfunctions of a differential operator. To be useful in applications, a boundary value problem should be well posed. This means that given the input to the problem there exists a unique solution, which depends continuously on the input. Much theoretical work in the field of
partial differential equation In mathematics, a partial differential equation (PDE) is an equation which imposes relations between the various partial derivatives of a multivariable function. The function is often thought of as an "unknown" to be solved for, similarly to ...
s is devoted to proving that boundary value problems arising from scientific and engineering applications are in fact well-posed. Among the earliest boundary value problems to be studied is the
Dirichlet problem In mathematics, a Dirichlet problem is the problem of finding a function which solves a specified partial differential equation (PDE) in the interior of a given region that takes prescribed values on the boundary of the region. The Dirichlet pr ...
, of finding the harmonic functions (solutions to
Laplace's equation In mathematics and physics, Laplace's equation is a second-order partial differential equation named after Pierre-Simon Laplace, who first studied its properties. This is often written as \nabla^2\! f = 0 or \Delta f = 0, where \Delta = \na ...
); the solution was given by the
Dirichlet's principle In mathematics, and particularly in potential theory, Dirichlet's principle is the assumption that the minimizer of a certain energy functional is a solution to Poisson's equation. Formal statement Dirichlet's principle states that, if the funct ...
.


Explanation

Boundary value problems are similar to
initial value problem In multivariable calculus, an initial value problem (IVP) is an ordinary differential equation together with an initial condition which specifies the value of the unknown function at a given point in the domain. Modeling a system in physics or ot ...
s. A boundary value problem has conditions specified at the extremes ("boundaries") of the independent variable in the equation whereas an initial value problem has all of the conditions specified at the same value of the independent variable (and that value is at the lower boundary of the domain, thus the term "initial" value). A boundary value is a data value that corresponds to a minimum or maximum input, internal, or output value specified for a system or component. For example, if the independent variable is time over the domain ,1 a boundary value problem would specify values for y(t) at both t=0 and t=1, whereas an initial value problem would specify a value of y(t) and y'(t) at time t=0. Finding the temperature at all points of an iron bar with one end kept at
absolute zero Absolute zero is the lowest limit of the thermodynamic temperature scale, a state at which the enthalpy and entropy of a cooled ideal gas reach their minimum value, taken as zero kelvin. The fundamental particles of nature have minimum vibratio ...
and the other end at the freezing point of water would be a boundary value problem. If the problem is dependent on both space and time, one could specify the value of the problem at a given point for all time or at a given time for all space. Concretely, an example of a boundary value problem (in one spatial dimension) is :y''(x)+y(x)=0 to be solved for the unknown function y(x) with the boundary conditions :y(0)=0, \ y(\pi/2)=2. Without the boundary conditions, the general solution to this equation is :y(x) = A \sin(x) + B \cos(x). From the boundary condition y(0)=0 one obtains :0 = A \cdot 0 + B \cdot 1 which implies that B=0. From the boundary condition y(\pi/2)=2 one finds :2 = A \cdot 1 and so A=2. One sees that imposing boundary conditions allowed one to determine a unique solution, which in this case is :y(x)=2\sin(x).


Types of boundary value problems


Boundary value conditions

A boundary condition which specifies the value of the function itself is a
Dirichlet boundary condition In the mathematical study of differential equations, the Dirichlet (or first-type) boundary condition is a type of boundary condition, named after Peter Gustav Lejeune Dirichlet (1805–1859). When imposed on an ordinary or a partial differential ...
, or first-type boundary condition. For example, if one end of an iron rod is held at absolute zero, then the value of the problem would be known at that point in space. A boundary condition which specifies the value of the
normal derivative In mathematics, the directional derivative of a multivariable differentiable (scalar) function along a given vector v at a given point x intuitively represents the instantaneous rate of change of the function, moving through x with a velocity ...
of the function is a
Neumann boundary condition In mathematics, the Neumann (or second-type) boundary condition is a type of boundary condition, named after Carl Neumann. When imposed on an ordinary or a partial differential equation, the condition specifies the values of the derivative ap ...
, or second-type boundary condition. For example, if there is a heater at one end of an iron rod, then energy would be added at a constant rate but the actual temperature would not be known. If the boundary has the form of a curve or surface that gives a value to the normal derivative and the variable itself then it is a
Cauchy boundary condition In mathematics, a Cauchy () boundary condition augments an ordinary differential equation or a partial differential equation with conditions that the solution must satisfy on the boundary; ideally so as to ensure that a unique solution exists. A Ca ...
.


Examples

Summary of boundary conditions for the unknown function, y, constants c_0 and c_1 specified by the boundary conditions, and known scalar functions f and g specified by the boundary conditions.


Differential operators

Aside from the boundary condition, boundary value problems are also classified according to the type of differential operator involved. For an elliptic operator, one discusses elliptic boundary value problems. For a hyperbolic operator, one discusses hyperbolic boundary value problems. These categories are further subdivided into linear and various nonlinear types.


Applications


Electromagnetic potential

In
electrostatics Electrostatics is a branch of physics that studies electric charges at rest ( static electricity). Since classical times, it has been known that some materials, such as amber, attract lightweight particles after rubbing. The Greek word for amb ...
, a common problem is to find a function which describes the electric potential of a given region. If the region does not contain charge, the potential must be a solution to
Laplace's equation In mathematics and physics, Laplace's equation is a second-order partial differential equation named after Pierre-Simon Laplace, who first studied its properties. This is often written as \nabla^2\! f = 0 or \Delta f = 0, where \Delta = \na ...
(a so-called harmonic function). The boundary conditions in this case are the Interface conditions for electromagnetic fields. If there is no
current density In electromagnetism, current density is the amount of charge per unit time that flows through a unit area of a chosen cross section. The current density vector is defined as a vector whose magnitude is the electric current per cross-sectional are ...
in the region, it is also possible to define a
magnetic scalar potential Magnetic scalar potential, ''ψ'', is a quantity in classical electromagnetism analogous to electric potential. It is used to specify the magnetic H-field in cases when there are no free currents, in a manner analogous to using the electric po ...
using a similar procedure.


See also

Related mathematics: *
Initial value problem In multivariable calculus, an initial value problem (IVP) is an ordinary differential equation together with an initial condition which specifies the value of the unknown function at a given point in the domain. Modeling a system in physics or ot ...
*
Green's function In mathematics, a Green's function is the impulse response of an inhomogeneous linear differential operator defined on a domain with specified initial conditions or boundary conditions. This means that if \operatorname is the linear differentia ...
*
Stochastic processes and boundary value problems In mathematics, some boundary value problems can be solved using the methods of stochastic analysis. Perhaps the most celebrated example is Shizuo Kakutani's 1944 solution of the Dirichlet problem for the Laplace operator using Brownian motion. Howe ...
* Sturm–Liouville theory *
Sommerfeld radiation condition In applied mathematics, the Sommerfeld radiation condition is a concept from theory of differential equations and scattering theory used for choosing a particular solution to the Helmholtz equation. It was introduced by Arnold Sommerfeld in 1912 an ...
* Perfect thermal contact condition Physical applications: * Waves * Normal mode *
Electrostatics Electrostatics is a branch of physics that studies electric charges at rest ( static electricity). Since classical times, it has been known that some materials, such as amber, attract lightweight particles after rubbing. The Greek word for amb ...
* Potential theory *
Computation of radiowave attenuation in the atmosphere The computation of radiowave attenuation in the atmosphere is a series of radio propagation models and methods to estimate the path loss due to attenuation of the signal passing through the atmosphere by the absorption of its different components ...
*
Black hole A black hole is a region of spacetime where gravity is so strong that nothing, including light or other electromagnetic waves, has enough energy to escape it. The theory of general relativity predicts that a sufficiently compact mass can defo ...
Numerical algorithms: *
Shooting method In numerical analysis, the shooting method is a method for solving a boundary value problem by reducing it to an initial value problem. It involves finding solutions to the initial value problem for different initial conditions until one finds the ...
*
Direct multiple shooting method In the area of mathematics known as numerical ordinary differential equations, the direct multiple shooting method is a numerical method for the solution of boundary value problems. The method divides the interval over which a solution is sought i ...
* Walk-on-spheres method *
Finite difference method In numerical analysis, finite-difference methods (FDM) are a class of numerical techniques for solving differential equations by approximating derivatives with finite differences. Both the spatial domain and time interval (if applicable) are di ...
*
Boundary element method The boundary element method (BEM) is a numerical computational method of solving linear partial differential equations which have been formulated as integral equations (i.e. in ''boundary integral'' form), including fluid mechanics, acoustics, ele ...


Notes


References

* A. D. Polyanin and V. F. Zaitsev, ''Handbook of Exact Solutions for Ordinary Differential Equations (2nd edition)'', Chapman & Hall/CRC Press, Boca Raton, 2003. . * A. D. Polyanin, ''Handbook of Linear Partial Differential Equations for Engineers and Scientists'', Chapman & Hall/CRC Press, Boca Raton, 2002. .


External links

* *
Linear Partial Differential Equations: Exact Solutions and Boundary Value Problems
at EqWorld: The World of Mathematical Equations. * {{Authority control Ordinary differential equations Mathematical problems