Paper 3, Section II, A

Mathematical Biology
Part II, 2009

An activator-inhibitor reaction diffusion system in dimensionless form is given by

ut=uxx+u2vbu,vt=dvxx+u2vu_{t}=u_{x x}+\frac{u^{2}}{v}-b u, \quad v_{t}=d v_{x x}+u^{2}-v

where bb and dd are positive constants. Which is the activitor and which the inhibitor? Determine the positive steady states and show, by an examination of the eigenvalues in a linear stability analysis of the spatially uniform situation, that the reaction kinetics is stable if b<1b<1.

Determine the conditions for the steady state to be driven unstable by diffusion. Show that the parameter domain for diffusion-driven instability is given by 0<b<10<b<1, bd>3+22b d>3+2 \sqrt{2}, and sketch the (b,d)(b, d) parameter space in which diffusion-driven instability occurs. Further show that at the bifurcation to such an instability the critical wave number kck_{c} is given by kc2=(1+2)/dk_{c}^{2}=(1+\sqrt{2}) / d.