Maximum principles for the relativistic heat equation

Abstract: The classical heat equation is incompatible with relativity, since the strong maximum principle allows for disturbances to propagate instantaneously. Some authors have proposed limiting the propagation speed by adding a linear hyperbolic correction term, but then even a weak maximum principle fails to hold. We study a more recently introduced relativistic heat equation, which replaces the Laplace operator by a quasilinear elliptic operator, and show that strong and weak maximum principles hold for stationary and time-varying solutions, respectively, as well as for sub- and supersolutions. Moreover, by transforming the equation into an equivalent form, related to the mean curvature operator, we prove even stronger tangency and comparison principles.