Partial Differential Equations
A partial differential equation is an equation involving partial derivatives of a function of several variables. In this course, we study the classical partial differential equations; the wave equation, the Laplace equation and the heat equation.
The course covers:
- Introduction to first order equations.
- The wave equation: equations in one or several space coordinates, Huygens’ principle.
- The Laplace equation: fundamental solutions, Green's function, Dirichlet problem, the maximum principle, Dirichlet's principle, introduction to Sobolev spaces.
- The heat equation: initial value problem, fundamental solutions, the maximum principle.
The course consists of one module.
Teaching Format
Instruction consists of lectures and exercises.
Assessment
The course is assessed through oral examination.
Examiner
A list of examiners can be found on
The schedule will be available no later than one month before the start of the course.
We do not recommend print-outs as changes can occur. At the start of the course,
your department will advise where you can find your schedule during the course.
Note that the course literature can be changed up to two months before the start of the course.
Lawrence Evans, Partial Differential Equations, AMS, 2010.
Course reports are displayed for the three most recent course instances.
