We establish asymptotic formulas for all the eigenvalues of the linearization problem of the Neumann problem for the scalar field equation in a finite interval

\[ \begin{cases} \varepsilon^2u_{xx}-u+u^3=0, & 0< x<1,\\ u_x(0)=u_x(1)=0. \end{cases} \]

$\varepsilon ^2u_{xx}+u-u^3=0$

$-3$

$0$

$-3$

$0$

In this paper, we consider the dynamical behaviour of a reaction–diffusion model for a population residing in a one-dimensional habit, with emphasis on the effects of boundary conditions and protection zone. We assume that the population is subjected to a strong Allee effect in its natural domain but obeys a monostable nonlinear growth in the protection zone $[L_1,\, L_2]$ with two constants satisfying $0\leq L_1< L_2$, and the general Robin condition is imposed on $x=0$ (i.e. $u(t,\,0)=bu_x(t,\,0)$ with $b\geq 0$). We show the existence of two critical values $0< L_*\leq L^*$, and prove that a vanishing–transition–spreading trichotomy result holds when the length of protection zone is smaller than $L_*$; a transition–spreading dichotomy result holds when the length of protection zone is between $L_*$ and $L^*$; only spreading happens when the length of protection zone is larger than $L^*$. Based on the properties of $L_*$, we obtain the precise strategies for an optimal protection zone: if $b$ is large (i.e. $b\geq 1/\sqrt {-g'(0)}$), the protection zone should start from somewhere near $0$; while if $b$ is small (i.e. $b< 1/\sqrt {-g'(0)}$), then the protection zone should start from somewhere away from $0$, and as far away from $0$ as possible.

The time-global unique classical positive solutions to the reaction–diffusion equations for prey–predator models with dormancy of predators are constructed. The feature appears on the nonlinear terms of Holling type $\rm I\!I$ functional response. The crucial step is to establish time-local positive classical solutions by using a new approximation associated with time-evolution operators. Although the system does not equip usual comparison principle for solutions to partial differential equation, a priori bounds are derived by enclosing and renormalising arguments of solutions to the corresponding ordinary differential equations. Furthermore, time-global existence, invariant regions and asymptotic behaviours of solutions follow from such a priori bounds.

Based on the fact that the incubation periods of epidemic disease in asymptomatically infected and infected individuals are inevitable and different, we propose a diffusive susceptible, asymptomatically infected, symptomatically infected and vaccinated (SAIV) epidemic model with delays in this paper. To see whether epidemic disease can propagate spatially with a constant speed, we focus on the travelling wave solution for this model. When the basic reproduction number of the corresponding spatial-homogenous delayed differential system is greater than one and the wave speed is greater than or equal to the critical speed, we prove that this model admits nontrivial positive travelling wave solutions. Our theoretical results are of benefit to the prevention and control of epidemic.

In this paper, we study the entire solutions of the Fisher–KPP (Kolmogorov–Petrovsky–Piskunov) equation ut = uxx + f(u) on the half line [0, ∞) with Dirichlet boundary condition at x = 0. (1) For any $c \ge 2\sqrt {f'(0)} $, we show the existence of an entire solution ${{\cal U}^c}(x,t)$ which connects the traveling wave solution φc(x + ct) at t = −∞ and the unique positive stationary solution V(x) at t = +∞; (2) We also construct an entire solution ${{\cal U}}(x,t)$ which connects the solution of ηt = f(η) at t = −∞ and V(x) at t = +∞.

We study the dynamics of a reaction–diffusion–advection equation $u_{t}=u_{xx}-au_{x}+f(u)$ on the right half-line with Robin boundary condition $u_{x}=au$ at $x=0$, where $f(u)$ is a combustion nonlinearity. We show that, when $0<a<c$ (where $c$ is the travelling wave speed of $u_{t}=u_{xx}+f(u)$), $u$ converges in the $L_{loc}^{\infty }([0,\infty ))$ topology either to $0$ or to a positive steady state; when $a\geq c$, a solution $u$ starting from a small initial datum tends to $0$ in the $L^{\infty }([0,\infty ))$ topology, but this is not true for a solution starting from a large initial datum; when $a>c$, such a solution converges to $0$ in $L_{loc}^{\infty }([0,\infty ))$ but not in $L^{\infty }([0,\infty ))$ topology.

This paper concerns the quenching phenomena of a reaction–diffusion equation $u_{t}=u_{xx}+1/(1-u)$ in a one dimensional varying domain $[g(t),h(t)]$, where $g(t)$ and $h(t)$ are two free boundaries evolving by a Stefan condition. We prove that all solutions will quench regardless of the choice of initial data, and we also show that the quenching set is a compact subset of the initial occupying domain and that the two free boundaries remain bounded.

This paper is concerned with the existence, non-existence and qualitative properties of cylindrically symmetric travelling fronts for time-periodic reaction–diffusion equations with bistable nonlinearity in ℝm with m ≥ 2. It should be mentioned that the existence and stability of two-dimensional time-periodic V-shaped travelling fronts and three-dimensional time-periodic pyramidal travelling fronts have been studied previously. In this paper we consider two cases: the first is that the wave speed of a one-dimensional travelling front is positive and the second is that the one-dimensional wave speed is zero. For both cases we establish the existence, non-existence and qualitative properties of cylindrically symmetric travelling fronts. In particular, for the first case we furthermore show the asymptotic behaviours of level sets of the cylindrically symmetric travelling fronts.

A second-order in time finite-difference scheme using a modified predictor–corrector method is proposed for the numerical solution of the generalized Burgers–Fisher equation. The method introduced, which, in contrast to the classical predictor–corrector method is direct and uses updated values for the evaluation of the components of the unknown vector, is also analysed for stability. Its efficiency is tested for a single-kink wave by comparing experimental results with others selected from the available literature. Moreover, comparisons with the classical method and relevant analogous modified methods are given. Finally, the behaviour and physical meaning of the two-kink wave arising from the collision of two single-kink waves are examined.

This paper is concerned with the initial boundary value problem of a class of nonlinear wave equations and reaction–diffusion equations with several nonlinear source terms of different signs. For the initial boundary value problem of the nonlinear wave equations, we derive a blow up result for certain initial data with arbitrary positive initial energy. For the initial boundary value problem of the nonlinear reaction–diffusion equations, we discuss some probabilities of the existence and nonexistence of global solutions and give some sufficient conditions for the global and nonglobal existence of solutions at high initial energy level by employing the comparison principle and variational methods.

In 1991, McNabb introduced the concept of mean action time (MAT) as a finite measure of the time required for a diffusive process to effectively reach steady state. Although this concept was initially adopted by others within the Australian and New Zealand applied mathematics community, it appears to have had little use outside this region until very recently, when in 2010 Berezhkovskii and co-workers [A. M. Berezhkovskii, C. Sample and S. Y. Shvartsman, “How long does it take to establish a morphogen gradient?” Biophys. J. 99 (2010) L59–L61] rediscovered the concept of MAT in their study of morphogen gradient formation. All previous work in this area has been limited to studying single-species differential equations, such as the linear advection–diffusion–reaction equation. Here we generalize the concept of MAT by showing how the theory can be applied to coupled linear processes. We begin by studying coupled ordinary differential equations and extend our approach to coupled partial differential equations. Our new results have broad applications, for example the analysis of models describing coupled chemical decay and cell differentiation processes.

A recent Monte Carlo method for solving one-dimensional reaction–diffusion equations is considered here as a convergence problem for a sequence of spatial branching processes with interaction. The martingale problem is studied and a limit theorem is proved by embedding spaces of measures in Sobolev spaces.

Conditions are given for which the Markov jump process describing the stochastic model of chemical reactions with diffusion converges to the solution of the corresponding deterministic reaction–diffusion equation.