SYSTEMS OF REACTION-DIFFUSION EQUATIONS WITH SPATIALLY DISTRIBUTED HYSTERESIS

We study systems of reaction-diffusion equations with discontinuous spatially distributed hysteresis on the right-hand side. The input of the hysteresis is given by a vector-valued function of space and time. Such systems describe hysteretic interaction of non-diffusive (bacteria, cells, etc.) and diffusive (nutrient, proteins, etc.) substances leading to formation of spatial patterns. We provide sufficient conditions under which the problem is well posed in spite of the assumed discontinuity of hysteresis. These conditions are formulated in terms of geometry of the manifolds defining the hysteresis thresholds and the spatial profile of the initial data.