An inverse problem of determining the parameters in diffusion equations by using fractional physics-informed neural networks

Abstract

In this study, we address an inverse problem in nonlinear time-fractional diffusion equations using a deep neural network. The challenge arises from the equation's nonlinear behavior, the involvement of time-based fractional Caputo derivatives, and the need to estimate parameters influenced by space or the solution of the fractional PDE. Our solution involves a fractional physics-informed neural network (FPINN). Initially, we use FPINN to solve a straightforward problem. Then, we apply FPINN to the inverse problem of estimating parameter and model non-linearity. For the inverse problem, we enhance our method by including the mean square error of final observations in the FPINN's cost function. This adjustment helps effectively in tackling the unique challenges of the time-fractional diffusion equation. Numerical tests involving regular and singular examples demonstrate the effectiveness of the physics-informed neural network approach in accurately recovering parameters. We reinforce this finding through a numerical comparison with alternative methods such as the alternating direction multiplier method (ADMM), the gradient descent, and the DeepONets (deep operator networks) method.