Inverse Problems for a Class of Conditional Probability Measure-Dependent Evolution Equations

Abstract

We investigate the inverse problem of identifying a conditional probability measure in a measure-dependent dynamical system. We provide existence and well-posedness results and outline a discretization scheme for approximating a measure. For this scheme, we prove general method stability. The work is motivated by Partial Differential Equation (PDE) models of flocculation for which the shape of the post-fragmentation conditional probability measure greatly impacts the solution dynamics. To illustrate our methodology, we apply the theory to a particular PDE model that arises in the study of population dynamics for flocculating bacterial aggregates in suspension, and provide numerical evidence for the utility of the approach.