Nonlinear hyperbolic equations in surface theory: integrable discretizations and approximation results

A numerical scheme is developed for solution of the Goursat problem for a class of nonlinear hyperbolic systems with an arbitrary number of independent variables. Convergence results are proved for this difference scheme. These results are applied to hyperbolic systems of differential-geometric origin, like the sine-Gordon equation describing the surfaces of the constant negative Gaussian curvature (K-surfaces). In particular, we prove the convergence of discrete K--surfaces and their Backlund transformations to their continuous counterparts. This puts on a firm basis the generally accepted belief (which however remained unproved untill this work) that the classical differential geometry of…