Deep learning for gradient flows using the Brezis–Ekeland principle

We propose a deep learning method for the numerical solution of partial differential equations that arise as gradient flows. The method relies on the Brezis–Ekeland principle, which naturally defines an objective function to be minimized, and so is ideally suited for a machine learning approach using deep neural networks. We describe our approach in a general framework and illustrate the method with the help of an example implementation for the heat equation in space dimensions two to seven.