Spikes for the Gierer-Meinhardt system in two dimensions: The strong coupling case

Abstract

Numerical computations often show that the Gierer-Meinhardt system has stable solutions which display patterns of multiple interior peaks (often also called spots). These patterns are also frequently observed in natural biological systems. It is assumed that the diffusion rate of the activator is very small and the diffusion rate of the inhibitor is finite (this is the so-called strong-coupling case). In this paper, we rigorously establish the existence and stability of such solutions of the full Gierer-Meinhardt system in two dimensions far from homogeneity. Green's function together with its derivatives plays a major role.