Two-Dimensional Riemann Problems: Transonic Shock Waves and Free Boundary Problems

Abstract

We are concerned with global solutions of multidimensional Riemann problems for nonlinear hyperbolic systems of conservation laws, focusing on their global configurations and structures. We present some recent developments in the rigorous analysis of two-dimensional Riemann problems involving transonic shock waves through several prototypes of hyperbolic systems of conservation laws and discuss some further multidimensional Riemann problems and related problems for nonlinear partial differential equations. In particular, we present four different two-dimensional Riemann problems through these prototypes of hyperbolic systems and show how these Riemann problems can be reformulated/solved as free boundary problems with transonic shock waves as free boundaries for the corresponding nonlinear conservation laws of mixed elliptic-hyperbolic type and related nonlinear partial differential equations.