A Localized Orthogonal Decomposition Method for Heterogeneous Stokes Problems

SIAM Journal on Numerical Analysis, Volume 63, Issue 4, Page 1617-1641, August 2025.
Abstract. In this paper, we propose a multiscale method for heterogeneous Stokes problems. The method is based on the localized orthogonal decomposition (LOD) methodology and has approximation properties independent of the regularity of the coefficients. We apply the LOD to an appropriate reformulation of the Stokes problem, which allows us to construct exponentially decaying basis functions for the velocity approximation while using a piecewise constant pressure approximation. The exponential decay motivates a localization of the basis computation, which is essential for the practical realization of the method. We perform a rigorous a priori error analysis and prove optimal convergence rates for the velocity approximation and a postprocessed pressure approximation, provided that the supports of the basis functions are logarithmically increased with the desired accuracy. Numerical experiments support the theoretical results of this paper.