Linear Convergence of Parareal Algorithm for Semilinear Parabolic Equations

Long-time simulations of evolution equations present substantial computational challenges due to the inherently sequential nature of conventional time-stepping schemes. The parareal method, a leading parallel-in-time (PinT) algorithm, offers a promising approach to overcome the challenge by introducing concurrency in the time domain. While its convergence theory is well-established for linear problems, extending the theory to nonlinear problems, particularly when the problem data have only limited regularity, remains a significant challenge. In this work, we provide the convergence analysis of the parareal algorithm for solving semilinear parabolic equations with an $H^2$ initial data. We employ stable rational approximations and first-order linearization as coarse propagators, establish the linear convergence of the parareal algorithm and provide a sharp estimate for the convergence factor. The analysis combines the error-splitting technique from the superlinear convergence analysis of the parareal method, a refined linear convergence theory for linear parabolic equations, and \textsl{a priori} error estimates that are optimal with respect to the regularity of the problem data. The analysis shows the close connection between the convergence behavior of nonlinear models and their linear counterparts. Numerical experiments fully support the theoretical findings.