Paper detail

On the initial value problem for the wave equation in Friedmann -- Robertson -- Walker space-times

We study the wave propagator for a Friedmann - Robertson - Walker background space-time, which is singular at time t=0. Using a spherical means formulation for the solution of the wave equation that is due to Klainerman and Sarnak, we derive three properties of solutions. the first is sharp time decay properties, using ideas of Fritz John. the second is that the wave equation in Friedmann - Robertson - Walker space-time does not satisfy the sharp Huygens property. The third is that the initial value problem for a class of data posed at the tingular time is well defined. Since the wave equation is reversible, this represents a class of data which propagates information smoothly from the past to the future passing through the space-time singularity.