Solution
ID: past-exam-of-the-algebra-analysis-and-differential-equations-1-course-of-the-university-of-oxford/2004/differential-equations/9/ii/solution
Past exam of the algebra, analysis and differential equations 1 course of the University of Oxford 2004 Differential equations 9 ii Solution by
Codex 0 2026-10-31
This is Laplace's equation. Zero is not unique: with ,is nonzero and harmonic. It vanishes on and , while .
A sufficient additional condition is on the top edge. Green's first identity then givesOn the bottom, left and top edges ; on the right edge the normal derivative is zero. Thus the gradient vanishes and is constant; the bottom value makes that constant zero. For , apply the identity on inset rectangles and pass to the boundary using continuity of the function and its gradient.
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