MA 301

Dr. Srikumar Acharya

Department of Mathematic (SAS)
K.I.I.T. University
Partial Differential Equations
Part I:
1. What is a partial differential equation?
2. Discuss the order and degree of a partial differential equation.
3. Give examples of homogeneous and non homogeneous partial differential equations.
4. Give an example of a linear partial differential equation.
5. What do you mean by a solution of a partial differential equation?
6. What is the superposition principle? Why is it useful?
7. What are boundary conditions and initial conditions for a differential equation?
8. Find a solution u(x, y) of the partial differential equation
u
xx
+ 9u = 0.
9. Write down the one-dimensional wave equation and show that u = x
2
+ t
2
is a solution for it.
10. What are the eigenfunctions and their frequencies of the vibrating string?
11. Show that u = e
t
sin x is a solution for one-dimensional heat equation.
12. Verify that u =
1

x
2
+y
2
+z
2
satises the three-dimensional Laplace equation.
13. What are Fourier sine series and Fourier cosine series of a function f(x), 0 < x < L.
14. What are the physical assumptions for derivation of one-dimensional wave equation?
15. What is surface of revolution? Show that z = x
2
+ y
2
represent a surface of revolution.
16. What is the solution of the one-dimensional wave equation
u
tt
= c
2
u
xx
with initial deection u(x, 0) = f(x) and initial velocity u
t
(x, 0) = g(x)?
17. What are the conditions that the equation of the form
Au
xx
+ 2Bu
xy
+ Cu
yy
= F(x, y, u, u
x
, u
y
)
is said to be elliptic, parabolic and hyperbolic?
18. Write an one-dimensional heat equation with initial and boundary condition.
19. What is steady-state two-dimensional heat ow and what is Dirichlet Problem?
20. Write down the two-dimensional wave equation with initial and boundary conditions?
21. What is a double Fourier series Solution of two-dimensional wave equation with initial and boundary
conditions?
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22. What are two and three dimensional Laplacian? What is a Laplace equation?
23. Show that u
n
(r, ) = r
n
cos n, n = 0, 1, 2, , are solutions of two dimensional Laplaces
equation.
24. What is three dimensional Laplacian? Reduce it to cylindrical and spherical coordinate.
25. What are the representation of cartesian coordinate in polar and spherical coordinates?
26. Verify that u = c/r, r =
_
x
2
+ y
2
+ z
2
, satises Laplaces equation in spherical coordinate.
27. What is the error function?
Part II:
1. Solve the system
u
xx
= 0, u
yy
= 0.
2. Show that the solutions u(x, y) of
yu
x
xu
y
= 0
represent surfaces of revolution.
3. Derive one-dimensional wave equation

2
u
t
2
= c
2

2
u
x
2
.
4. Solve the one-dimensional wave equation
u
tt
= c
2
u
xx
with initial deection u(x, 0) = f(x) and initial velocity u
t
(x, 0) = g(x) by using variable separa-
tion separation method and Fourier series.
5. Find deection u(x, t) of a vibrating string of length L = when c
2
= 1, the initial velocity is zero
and the initial deection is 0.1x( x).
6. Find the solution u(x, y) of u
x
+ u
y
= 0 by separating variables.
7. Find the solution u(x, y) of u
x
+ u
y
= (x + y)u by separating variables.
8. Transform the following equation to normal form and solve it:
u
xx
4u
xy
+ 3u
yy
= 0.
9. Derive DAlemberts Solution of the one-dimensional wave equation.
10. Find DAlemberts Solution of the one-dimensional wave equation with L = 1, c
2
= 1, the initial
deection f(x) = k sin x and the initial velocity g(x) = 0.
11. A string moving in an elastic medium is modeled by
u
tt
= c
2
u
xx

2
u
where the constant
2
is proportional to the elasticity coefcient of the medium. Solve this equation
for a string of length L, xed at two ends, subject to initial displacement f(x) and initial velocity
zero.
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12. Solve the one-dimensional heat equation with the initial and boundary conditions
u(x, 0) = f(x), and u(0, t) = 0 = u(L, t)
by Fourier series.
13. Find the temperature in a laterally insulated bar of length L whose ends are kept at temperature 0,
assuming that the initial temperature is f(x).
14. Solve Dirichlet Problem in a rectangular region Rby variable separation method.
15. Find the temperature u(x, t) in a bar of silver that is perfectly insulated laterally, whose end are kept
at temperature 0
o
C and whose initial temperature is x(10x)
o
C. Given that length is 10cm, constant
cross section area is 1 cm
2
, density 10.6gm/cm
3
, thermal conductivity 1.04 cal/(cm sec
o
C), specic
heat 0.056 cal/(gm
o
C).
16. Show that if the bar is perfectly insulated laterally, also at ends and the initial temperature is f(x),
then separating variables gives the solution
u(x, t) = A
0
+

n=1
A
n
cos
nx
L
exp
_

_
cn
L
_
2
t
_
.
where A
n
are constants. Find A
n
for n = 1, 2, 3, .
17. If a bar is perfectly insulated laterally, also at ends and the initial temperature is f(x) = cos 2x, nd
the temperature u(x, t) in the bar.
18. The faces of a thin square copper plate are perfectly insulated. The upper side is kept at 20
o
C and
the other sides are kept at 0
o
C. Find the steady-state temperature u(x, y) in the plate.
19. The faces, upper and lower sides of a thin square copper plate are perfectly insulated. The left side
is kept at 0
o
C and the right side at f(y)
o
C. Find the steady-state temperature u(x, y) in the plate.
20. By using variable separation and Fourier integral nd the temperature in the innite bar if the initial
temperature is f(x).
21. Find the temperature in the innite bar if the initial temperature f(x) = 1/(1 + x
2
).
22. If the initial temperature f(x) of a innite bar is given by
f(x) =
_
1 if x > 0
0 if x < 0
then, show that the temperature u(x, t) is given by
u(x, t) =
1

_

x/2c

t
e
z
2
dz
23. Find the deection u(x, y, t) of the square membrane with sides a and b and c = 1 if the initial
velocity is zero and the initial deection is
sin
2x
a
sin
3y
b
.
24. Represent f(x, y) = xy by a double Fourier series, where 0 < x < , 0 < y < .
25. What is two dimensional Laplacian. Reduce it to polar coordinate.
26. Show that the only solution of
2
u = 0 depending only on r =
_
x
2
+ y
2
is u = a ln r + b with
constants a and b.
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27. Assuming that termwise differentiation is permissible, show that a solution of the laplace equation
in the disk r < R satisfying the boundary condition u(R, ) = f() is given by
u(r, ) = a
0
+

n=1
_
a
n
_
r
R
_
n
cos n + b
n
_
r
R
_
n
sin n
_
where a
n
, b
n
are the Fourier coefcient of f.
28. Solve the Laplace equation in the unit disk satisfying the boundary conditions u(1, ) = 100 if
< < 0 and u(1, ) = 100 if 0 < < .
29. Find the temperature u(r, ) in a thin semicircular plate r < 1, y > 0 if the segment 1 < x < 1
is kept at 0
o
C and semicircular boundary is kept at temperature 100 sin
3

o
C.
30. Show that
2
u is invariant under translations
v = x + a, w = y + b
and under rotations
v = xcos y sin , w = xsin + y cos .
31. Show that the only solution of the Laplaces equation depending only on r, r =
_
x
2
+ y
2
+ z
2
is
u = c/r + k.
32. Find the electrostatic potential between two coaxial cylinders of radii r
1
= 2cm and r
2
= 4cm kept
at potential 220 volts and 140 volts, respectively.
33. Solve the following partial differential equation by Laplace transforms:
u
x
+ 2x
u
t
= 2x, u(x, 0) = 1, u(0, t) = 1.
34. Find the electrostatic potential between two coaxial spheres of radii r
1
cm and r
2
cm kept at potential
u
1
volts and u
2
volts, respectively.
35. Find the electrostatic potential in the interior of a sphere of radius 1 kept at potential f() = cos 3+
3 cos .
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