Decay of solutions of nonlinear Dirac equations: the 2D case

Abstract

We study the long-time behavior of small solutions for a broad class of 2D Dirac-type equations with suitable nonlinearities. First, we prove that for nonlinearities with power $p\geq 5$ (massless case) and $p\geq7$ (massive case), any small globally bounded radial solution with vorticity $S\ne -1,0$ decays to zero locally in $L^2_{loc}$, as time tends to infinity. For solutions uniformly bounded in time in a weighted $H^1$ space, this decay result extends to lower powers $p\geq 3$ (massless) and $p\geq5$ (massive). Our main results apply to several physical models of current interest, such as the 2D Dirac equation with a honeycomb potential described by Fefferman and Weinstein. Finally, we rule out the existence of small, localized structures such as standing breathers or solitary waves in the 2D regimes considered. To prove these results, we introduce new virial identities with a particular algebra that are applied directly to the Dirac model, and without resorting to the nonlinear Klein-Gordon equation.