Singularity for a multidimensional variational wave equation arising from nematic liquid crystals

Abstract

This article is focused on a multidimensional nonlinear variational wave equation which is the Euler-Lagrange equation of a variational principle arising form the theory of nematic liquid crystals. By using the method of characteristics, we show that the smooth solutions for the spherically-symmetric variational wave equation breakdown in finite time, even for the arbitrarily small initial energy.