Existence and uniqueness of solutions to characteristic evolution in Bondi-Sachs coordinates in general relativity - art. no. 084012

We show that the theorem of Duff on the existence and uniqueness of solutio ns to linear characteristic initial-value problems holds in the case of lin earlized characteristic evolution in Bondi-Sachs coordinates in general rel ativity. This represents the characteristic equivalent to the manifest exis tence and uniqueness of the case of standard Cauchy problems. This extends Sachs' original work on the characteristic approach to thr Einstein equatio ns, by considering a null-timelike approach rather than a null-asymptotic o ne. [S0556-2821(99)04406-9].