Critical Points of Strichartz Functional

We study a pair of infinite dimensional dynamical systems naturally associated with the study of minimizing/maximizing functions for the Strichartz inequalities for the Schrödinger equation. One system is of gradient type and the other one is a Hamiltonian system. For both systems, the corresponding sets of critical points, their stability, and the relation between the two are investigated. By a combination of numerical and analytical methods we argue that the Gaussian is a maximizer in a class of Strichartz inequalities for dimensions one, two, and three. The argument reduces to verification of an apparently new combinatorial inequality involving binomial coefficients.