MATH 232 Lectures Log

Lecture 1, Jan 13

Topics

  • Introduction to the course.
  • Review of Chapters 1 and 2.

Readings

  • Make sure you know the content of those two chapters.

Lecture 2, Jan 15

Topics

  • Review of Chapters 3 and 4.
  • Topology induced by a family of seminorms.
  • Nets.

Readings

  • Make sure you know the content of those two chapters.
  • Section 5.7

Lecture 3, Jan 20

Topics

  • Review of Chapter 5.
  • Topology induced by a family of seminorms.
  • Nets.

Readings

Lecture 4, Jan 22

Topics

  • Duality between $L^p_{loc}$ and $L^q_c$.

Readings

Jan 27

To be rescheduled

Lecture 5, Jan 29

Topics

  • Review of distributions.

Readings

Lecture 6, Feb 3

Topics

  • Sobolev Spaces.

Readings

Lecture 7, Feb 10

Topics

  • The $W^{k,\infty}$ spaces.
  • Complete proof of the extension theorem.
  • The last item of the proof of the existence of the trace map.

Readings

Lecture 8, Feb 12

Topics

  • Sobolev Spaces.

Readings

Lecture 9, Feb 17

Topics

  • Poisson equation.

Readings

Homework #1

Denote by $Lip(\Omega)$ the set of continuous functions on $\Omega$ that are globally Lipschitz. Namely, if $f\in Lip(\Omega)$, there is a $L>0$ such that $|f(x)-f(y)|\leq L\|x-y\|$ for every $x,y\in\Omega$.
  1. Prove that $\|f\|_{Lip}=\|f\|_{C^0}+\sup_{x\neq y}\frac{|f(x)-f(y)|}{|x-y|}$ is a norm on $Lip([0,1])$ and show that, with this norm, $Lip([0,1])$ is a Banach space.
  2. Prove that $W^{1,\infty}([0,1])=Lip([0,1])$.
  3. Let $f\in L^p(\mathbb R^2_+)$. Prove that $\|f\|_{L^p(\mathbb R\times(0,\varepsilon))}\to0$ as $\varepsilon\to0^+$ without using Poincare' inequality.
  4. Let $\eta\in C^\infty([0,\infty))$ be such that $\eta=0$ in $[0,1]$, $\eta=1$ in $[2,\infty)$ and $\eta\in(0,1)$ in $(1,2)$. Set $\eta_\varepsilon(x)=\eta(x/\varepsilon)$. Show that there is a constant $c>0$ such that $|\eta'_\varepsilon(x)||\leq c/\varepsilon$ for $x\in(\varepsilon,2\varepsilon)$.
  5. Verify using Theorem 6.2.6 that $f(x)=0$ for $\in[-1,0)$ and $f(x)=1$ for $\in(0,1]$ does not belong to $W^{1,p}([-1,1])$ for $p\in[1,\infty)$ while $g(x)=x+1/2$ for $x\in(-1/2,0)$, $g(x)=1/2-x$ for $x\in(0,1/2)$ and $g(x)=0$ otherwise does belong to $W^{1,p}([-1,1])$.

Lecture 10, Feb 24

Topics

  • An experience of interaction with AI.
  • Embedding theorem for Soboleve spaces.

Lecture 11, Feb 26

Topics

  • The dual Sobolev spaces $H^{-k}$.
  • The rainbow of functional spaces.
  • Resolvant of an operator.
  • $\rho(A)$ is an open set.

Lecture 12, Mar 3

Topics

  • Relation between spectral theory and quantum physics.
  • Spectrum of the multiplication operator in $L^1([0,1])$.

Lecture 13, Mar 5

Topics

  • Relation between spectral theory and quantum physics.
  • Spectrum of the derivtive operator in $L^1([0,\infty))$.

Lecture 14, Mar 17

Topics

  • An unbounded bijective linear operator with an unbouded inverse.
  • The adjoint operator.

Lecture 15, Mar 19

Topics

  • Why is it important to find the spectrum of an operator.
  • The multiplication operator by a real function on $L^2(\bR)$ is self-adjoint.

Lecture 16, Mar 26

Topics

  • Why is it important to find the spectrum of an operator.
  • The multiplication operator by a real function on $L^2(\bR)$ is self-adjoint.

Lecture 17, Mar 31

Topics

  • Characterization of self-adjoint operators.

Homework #2

  1. Prove Theorem 2.2.36
  2. Prove Theorem 2.2.50
  3. Let $X$ be a Banach space, $A$ a closed operator on $X$ and let $\lambda\in\mathbb C$. Assume that there is a sequence $x_n\in X$ with $\|x_n\|=1$ and such that $Ax_n-\lambda x_n\to0$. Prove that $\lambda\in\sigma(A)$.
  4. Let $A$ be a bounded operator on a Hilbert space $H$. Use the fact that $\ker A^*=(Im A)^\perp$, and so that $H=\ker A^*\oplus \overline{Im A}$, to prove that $$ \sigma_r(A) = \{\lambda\in\mathbb C : \lambda\not\in\sigma_p(A)\text{ and }\bar\lambda\in\sigma_p(A^*)\}. $$
  5. Define the left and right shifts operators on $\ell^2$ by $$ (Sx)_n = x_{n+1},\; (Tx)_1=0,\; (Tx)_n=x_{n-1},\;n\geq1. $$ Show that $T$ and $S$ are bounded and evaluate $\|S\|$ and $\|T\|$; then, determine $S^*$ and $T^*$ and find $\sigma_p(S)$, $\sigma_c(S)$, $\sigma_r(S)$, $\sigma_p(T)$, $\sigma_c(T)$, $\sigma_r(T)$.

Lecture 18, Apr 7

Topics

  • Self-adjoint extensions
  • Diagonalizing linear operators
  • Classification of linear operators on the plane
  • Normal operators
  • Spectral theorem for compact normal eigenvalues
  • Spectral theorem for self-adjoint operators with compact resolvent

Lecture 19, Apr 14

Topics

  • Spectral theorem for self-adjoint operators with compact resolvent
  • Functional calculus
  • Fourier transform on $\mathbb R^n$

Lecture 20, Apr 15

Topics

  • Fourier transform on $\mathbb R^n$
  • Spectral decomposition for general unbounded self-adjoint operators on a Hilbert space

Lecture 21, Apr 21

Topics

  • Spectral decomposition for general unbounded self-adjoint operators on a Hilbert space
  • Spectral measure
  • Flows and semiflows
  • Solutions of the free Schrodinger equation on $\mathbb R$.
  • Classical and quantum harmonic oscillator

Lecture 22, Apr 23

Topics

  • Using the spectral decomposition: defining nonlocal operators, evaluating norms of functions of operators, writing resolvents in integral form.
  • Semigroups of linear bounded operators.

Lecture 23, Apr 24

Topics

  • Semigroups of linear bounded operators.
  • Semiflows of non-linear PDEs.

Homework #3

  1. Diagonalize the Laplacian on $L^2(\mathbb S^1)$ and use this diagonalization to write the general solution of the Schrodinger equation $$ \dot\psi = -i\Delta\psi,\;\;\psi(0)=\psi_0\in L^2(\mathbb S^1). $$ Then use chatgpt to create a mp4 video of the solution for $$ \psi_0(x) = \sum_{n\in\mathbb Z}e^{-\sigma^2(n-n_0)^2-inx_0}e^{inx} $$ with $\sigma=0.18$, $x_0=\pi$, $n_0=10$. Is the solution periodic in time?
  2. Let $A$ be a self-adjoint operator with spectrum $\sigma(A)$. Show that $$ e^A = \int_{\sigma(A)}e^\lambda dE(\lambda) $$ by discretizing the integral to transform it into a finite sum and then taking the limit as shown in the Spectral Decomposition section of the textbook.
  3. The classical harmonic oscillator can be written as the following first order ODE on the plane $(x,p)$: $$ \begin{pmatrix}\dot x\\\dot y\end{pmatrix} = \begin{pmatrix} 0&1\\ -1&0\\ \end{pmatrix} \begin{pmatrix} x_0\\ y_0\\ \end{pmatrix} $$ Write explicitly the flow $(x(t),y(t))=F^t(x_0,y_0)$ generated by this ODE and visualize a few orbits of this flow on the $(x,p)$ plane.
    Then, use chatgpt to visualize find the evolution of the wave function $$ \psi_0(x) = \pi^{-1/4}\exp\left(-\frac{(x-x_0)^2}{2}+ip_0(x-\frac{x_0}{2})\right) $$ under the harmonic oscillator $H=(-d^2/dx^2+x^2)/2$ for some numerical value of $x_0$ and $p_0$.
    Now, denote by $\psi(t) = e^{-iHt}\psi_0$ the corresponding solution of the Schrodinger equation. Either by hand or with the help of some AI, evaluate the mean values $$ \begin{align} x_c(t) &= \langle \psi(t), M_x\psi(t)\rangle\\ p_c(t) &= \langle \psi(t), (-i d/dx)\psi(t)\rangle \end{align} $$ Do you detect any similarity between the classical solutions and the evolution of these "mean values"?
  4. Using the same diagonalization found in problem 1, consider now the semiflow $e^{-\Delta t}$ of the heat equation on the circle. Recall that a function $f=\sum_{n\in\mathbb Z} \hat f_n e^{inx}$ is analytical on the circle if and only if its Fourier coefficients $\hat f_n$ go to 0 exponentially fast. Use this fact to show that, given any $f_0\in L^2(\mathbb S^1)$, the function $f(t)=e^{-\Delta t}f_0$ is analytical for every $t>0$.

    Finally, recall that $f\in C^\infty(\mathbb S^1)$ if and only if its Fourier coefficients $\hat f_n$ go to zero faster than any negative power of $n$. Hence, the Fourier coefficients of any $\eta\in C^\infty(\mathbb S^1)^*$ must grow at most as some power of $n$, so that $\eta(f)$ is finite for every $f\in C^\infty(\mathbb S^1)$. Then show that, even if $\eta\in C^\infty(\mathbb S^1)^*$, we have that the formal expression $e^{-\Delta t}\eta$ is an analytical function (and so $-\Delta$ generates a flow even on the space of distributions).