Integrable hierarchies and information measures

Abstract

In this paper we investigate integrable models from the perspective of information theory, exhibiting various connections. We begin by showing that compressible hydrodynamics for a one-dimensional isentropic fluid, with an appropriately motivated information theoretic extension, is described by a general nonlinear Schrödinger (NLS) equation. Depending on the choice of the enthalpy function, one obtains the cubic NLS or other modified NLS equations that have applications in various fields. Next, by considering the integrable hierarchy associated with the NLS model, we propose higher order information measures which include the Fisher measure as their first member. The lowest members of the hierarchy are shown to be included in the expansion of a regularized Kullback-Leibler measure while, on the other hand, a suitable combination of the NLS hierarchy leads to a Wootters type measure related to a NLS equation with a relativistic dispersion relation. Finally, through our approach, we are led to construct integrable relativistic NLS equations. © 2008 IOP Publishing Ltd.