The Schrödinger problem on metric graphs

Abstract

We study the Schrödinger problem on metric graphs and its different formulations. Starting from a static version, we introduce an equivalent reformulation as entropic optimal transport and show $Γ$-convergence towards static optimal transport. We then rigorously derive a Benamou-Brenier type dynamic version of the Schrödinger problem, thereby extending known results from ${\rm RCD}^*(K,N)$-spaces. With this equivalence at hand, we conclude that the minimum values of the dynamic Schrödinger problem converge towards the squared Wasserstein distance, and minimizers converge to Wasserstein geodesics. We also extend the dynamic formulation to a more general class of initial and final data and show existence of solutions in this setting using the direct method. Lastly, we illustrate our analytical findings by a numerical investigation.