The Space-Time Ray Method: Linear and Nonlinear Waves

This is the first work devoted to the space-time ray method (STRM), a technique for solving partial differential equations and whose source dates back to Hamilton, Rayleigh and others. STRM gives a unified view of a large class of non-stationary wave processes that arise in a variety of situations. The basic aim of the authors is to explain the fundamentals of the method and how it can be used. To this end they apply it to many concrete examples: internal and surface waves (linear and nonlinear) in dense fluids, propagation of powerful narrow wave beams, Rayleigh waves, waves in waveguides of complex geometry, and so on. The treatment is reasonably self-contained, and so it is suitable for advanced courses, but the wealth of applications and examples will also make it a good reference in any area of science and engineering in which the modelling of wave processes is important.