$C^1$ virtual element methods on polygonal meshes with curved edges

Abstract: In this work we design a novel $C^1$-conforming virtual element method of arbitrary order $k \geq 2$, to solve the biharmonic problem on a domain with curved boundary and internal curved interfaces in two dimensions. By introducing a suitable stabilizing form, we develop a rigorous interpolation, stability and convergence analysis obtaining optimal error estimates in the energy norm. Finally, we validate the theoretical findings through numerical experiments.