Fundamentals of Bicomplex Pseudoanalytic Function Theory: Cauchy Integral Formulas, Negative Formal Powers and Schrödinger Equations with Complex Coefficients

Abstract

The study of the Dirac system and second-order elliptic equations with complex-valued coefficients on the plane naturally leads to bicomplex Vekua-type equations (Campos et al. in Adv Appl Clifford Algebras, 2012; Castaneda et al. in J Phys A Math Gen 38:9207–9219, 2005; Kravchenko in J Phys A Math Gen 39:12407–12425, 2006). To the difference of complex pseudoanalytic (or generalized analytic) functions (Bers in Theory of pseudo-analytic functions. New York University, New York, 1952; Vekua in Generalized analytic functions. Nauka, Moscow (in Russian); English translation Oxford, 1962. Pergamon Press, Oxford, 1959) the theory of bicomplex pseudoanalytic functions has not been developed. Such basic facts as, e.g., the similarity principle or the Liouville theorem in general are no longer available due to the presence of zero divisors in the algebra of bicomplex numbers. In the present work we develop a theory of bicomplex pseudoanalytic formal powers analogous to the developed by Bers (Theory of pseudo-analytic functions. New York University, 1952) and especially that of negative formal powers. Combining the approaches of Bers and Vekua with some additional ideas we obtain the Cauchy integral formula in the bicomplex setting. In the classical complex situation this formula was obtained under the assumption that the involved Cauchy kernel is global, a very restrictive condition taking into account possible practical applications, especially when the equation itself is not defined on the whole plane. We show that the Cauchy integral formula remains valid with the Cauchy kernel from a wider class called here the reproducing Cauchy kernels. We give a complete characterization of this class. To our best knowledge these results are new even for complex Vekua equations. We establish that reproducing Cauchy kernels can be used to obtain a full set of negative formal powers for the corresponding bicomplex Vekua equation and present an algorithm which allows one their construction. Bicomplex Vekua equations of a special form called main Vekua equations are closely related to stationary Schrodinger equations with complex-valued potentials. We use this relation to establish useful connections between the reproducing Cauchy kernels and the fundamental solutions for the Schrodinger operators which allow one to construct the Cauchy kernel when the fundamental solution is known and vice versa. Moreover, using these results we construct the fundamental solutions for the Darboux transformed Schrodinger operators.