In the study of integrable systems, two different approaches in particular have attracted considerable attention during the past twenty years. (1) The inverse scattering transform (IST), using complex function theory, which has been employed to solve many physically significant equations, the soliton' equations. (2) Twistor theory, using differential geometry, which has been used to solve the self-dual Yang--Mills (SDYM) equations, a four-dimensional system having important applications in mathematical physics. Both soliton and the SDYM equations have rich algebraic structures which have been extensively studied. Recently, it has been conjectured that, in some sense, all soliton equations arise as special cases of the SDYM equations; subsequently many have been discovered as either exact or asymptotic reductions of the SDYM equations. Consequently what seems to be emerging is that a natural, physically significant system such as the SDYM equations provides the basis for a unifying framework underlying this class of integrable systems, i.e. soliton' systems. This book contains several articles on the reduction of the SDYM equations to soliton equations and the relationship between the IST and twistor methods. The majority of nonlinear evolution equations are nonintegrable, and so asymptotic, numerical perturbation and reduction techniques are often used to study such equations. This book also contains articles on perturbed soliton equations. PainlevA(c) analysis of partial differential equations, studies of the PainlevA(c) equations and symmetry reductions of nonlinear partial differential equations. (ABSTRACT) In the study of integrable systems, two different approaches in particularhave attracted considerable attention during the past twenty years; the inverse scattering transform (IST), for soliton' equations and twistor theory, for the self-dual Yang--Mills (SDYM) equations. This book contains several articles on the reduction of the SDYM equations to soliton equations and the relationship between the IST and twistor methods. Additionally, it contains articles on perturbed soliton equations, Painleve analysis of partial differential equations, studies of the Painleve equations and symmetry reductions of nonlinear partial differential equations.

In the study of integrable systems, two different approaches in particular have attracted considerable attention during the past twenty years. (1) The inverse scattering transform (IST), using complex function theory, which has been employed to solve many physically significant equations, the `soliton' equations. (2) Twistor theory, using differential geometry, which has been used to solve the self-dual Yang--Mills (SDYM) equations, a four-dimensional system having important applications in mathematical physics. Both soliton and the SDYM equations have rich algebraic structures which have been extensively studied. Recently, it has been conjectured that, in some sense, all soliton equations arise as special cases of the SDYM equations; subsequently many have been discovered as either exact or asymptotic reductions of the SDYM equations. Consequently what seems to be emerging is that a natural, physically significant system such as the SDYM equations provides the basis for a unifying framework underlying this class of integrable systems, i.e. `soliton' systems. This book contains several articles on the reduction of the SDYM equations to soliton equations and the relationship between the IST and twistor methods. The majority of nonlinear evolution equations are nonintegrable, and so asymptotic, numerical perturbation and reduction techniques are often used to study such equations. This book also contains articles on perturbed soliton equations. Painleve analysis of partial differential equations, studies of the Painleve equations and symmetry reductions of nonlinear partial differential equations. (ABSTRACT) In the study of integrable systems, two different approaches in particular have attracted considerable attention during the past twenty years; the inverse scattering transform (IST), for `soliton' equations and twistor theory, for the self-dual Yang--Mills (SDYM) equations. This book contains several articles on the reduction of the SDYM equations to soliton equations and the relationship between the IST and twistor methods. Additionally, it contains articles on perturbed soliton equations, Painleve analysis of partial differential equations, studies of the Painleve equations and symmetry reductions of nonlinear partial differential equations.

Nonlinear physics has been growing at an astounding rate over the past two decades and has changed its character from a collection of exotic examples of nonstandard behaviour to an all-embracing scientific methodology. This practical hands-on guide provides an overview of the features of condensed matter systems. This book provides self-contained background material, however the centrepiece of the text is the chapter dealing with a systematic development of nonlinear field equations for many-body systems. In order to equip the reader with concrete skills in tackling nonlinear problems in physics, the authors analyse in great detail several important applications such as metamagnetism, superconductivity, the Hubbard Hamiltonian and the multi-electron atom to name a few. A separate mathematical chapter shows in an easy-to-follow manner how the various integrable nonlinear differential equations that arise in physics can be solved analytically. This book will serve as a compendium of facts and references related to the subject area of nonlinear condensed matter physics. In addition, it can be used as practical introduction into currently developed nonlinear research methods in theoretical physics in general.

Solitons have been of considerable interest to mathematicians since their discovery by Kruskal and Zabusky. This book brings together several aspects of soliton theory currently only available in research papers. Emphasis is given to the multi-dimensional problems arising and includes inverse scattering in multi-dimensions, integrable nonlinear evolution equations in multi-dimensions and the method. Thus, this book will be a valuable addition to the growing literature in the area and essential reading for all researchers in the field of soliton theory.