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Boltzmann Equation: Micro-Macro Decompositions and Positivity of Shock Profiles

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Abstract

We introduce an elementary energy method for the Boltzmann equation based on a decomposition of the equation into macroscopic and microscopic components. The decomposition is useful for the study of time-asymptotic stability of nonlinear waves. The wave location is determined by the macroscopic equation. The microscopic component has an equilibrating property. The coupling of macroscopic and microscopic components gives rise naturally to the dissipations similar to those obtained by the Chapman-Enskog expansion. Our main result is the establishment of the positivity of shock profiles for the Boltzmann equation. This is shown by the time-asymptotic approach and the maximal principle for the collision operator.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Mathematics, Academia Sinica, Taipei, Taiwan,R.O.C.

    Tai-Ping Liu

  2. Department of Mathematics, Stanford University Stanford, CA, 94305, USA

    Tai-Ping Liu

  3. Department of Mathematics, City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, P. R. China

    Shih-Hsien Yu

Authors
  1. Tai-Ping Liu
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  2. Shih-Hsien Yu
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Correspondence to Tai-Ping Liu.

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Communicated by P. Sarnak

The research of the first author was supported by the Institute of Mathematics, Academia Sinica, Taipei and NSC #91-2115-M-001-004. The research of the second author was supported by the SRG of City University of Hong Kong Grant #7001426.

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Liu, TP., Yu, SH. Boltzmann Equation: Micro-Macro Decompositions and Positivity of Shock Profiles. Commun. Math. Phys. 246, 133–179 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00220-003-1030-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00220-003-1030-2

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