A fully discrete LBRFD-IPDG method for linear fourth-order parabolic equations

Abstract

We propose a fully discrete method for linear fourth-order parabolic equations with Dirichlet boundary conditions, combining an implicit LBRFD multistep scheme in time with a mixed interior penalty discontinuous Galerkin (IPDG) method in space. The temporal discretization employs equispaced linear barycentric rational interpolants and incorporates a startup procedure. To facilitate the spatial discretization, the original problem is reformulated through an auxiliary variable. For certain parameter pairs $(n,d)$, the LBRFD method is shown to be $A(α)$-stable and to possess a wider stability angle than the corresponding BDF$p$ method of the same order. Stability and a priori error estimates are established via a $G$-energy technique and the discrete Grönwall lemma. The theoretical analysis yields a total $L^2$ error estimate of order $h^{k-1}+τ^p$, where $p=d$ if $n-d$ is even and $p=d+1$ if $n-d$ is odd. The reduced spatial convergence rate is attributed to boundary contributions on $\partialΩ$. Despite this theoretical prediction, numerical experiments confirm the stability and demonstrate optimal convergence of order $h^{k+1}+τ^p$.