The project is aimed at facilitating participation of US mathematicians in the workshop "Stability of Solitary Waves" to be held May 25-May 30th, in Pisa, Italy. Solitary waves are ubiquitous in a broad range of physical phenomena, from rouge waves in the ocean to the signal propagation in optical fibers. Stability of solitary waves is of paramount importance for the physical processes, with direct relevance to engineering applications. For example, transmission of a signal through an optical channel is feasible only if the shapes of the corresponding pulses do not deteriorate during the transmission, i.e., when they are stable. The workshop will provide a venue to stimulate exchange of ideas among the leading US and European mathematicians in the areas of stability of solitary waves. It will expose a number of young researchers and graduate students from the US to fundamental research by leading mathematicians. The informal sessions will provide ample opportunities for junior researchers and graduate students to interact with experts in the fields. A special effort is made to attract participants from the groups underrepresented in mathematics.
The workshop will have three main focus areas - existence of solitary waves, the spectral/linear stability, and their respective nonlinear stability. The specific information provided by the studies in each of these areas contributes crucial information to our understanding of solitary waves.
