The wave equation with a discontinuous coefficient depending on time only: Generalized solutions and propagation of singularities

This paper is devoted to the investigation of propagation of singularities in hyperbolic equations with non-smooth coefficients, using the Colombeau theory of generalized functions. As a model problem, we study the Cauchy problem for the one-dimensional wave equation with a discontinuous coefficient depending on time. After demonstrating the existence and uniqueness of generalized solutions in the sense of Colombeau to the problem, we investigate the phenomenon of propagation of singularities, arising from delta function initial data, for the case of a piecewise constant coefficient. We also provide an analysis of the interplay between singularity strength and propagation effects. Finally, we show that in case the initial data are distributions, the Colombeau solution to the model problem is associated with the piecewise distributional solution of the corresponding transmission problem.