Stochastic optimal control in Hilbert spaces: $C^{1,1}$ regularity of the value function and optimal synthesis via viscosity solutions

TL;DR

This paper establishes the $C^{1,1}$ regularity of the value function for infinite-dimensional stochastic control problems and constructs optimal feedback controls using viscosity solutions, with applications to reaction-diffusion and delay equations.

Contribution

It proves regularity properties of the value function and develops a method for optimal control synthesis via viscosity solutions in infinite dimensions.

Findings

Proved Lipschitz, semiconcavity, and semiconvexity of the value function.

Derived $C^{1,1}$ regularity of the value function.

Constructed optimal feedback controls using viscosity solutions.

Abstract

We study optimal control problems governed by abstract infinite dimensional stochastic differential equations using the dynamic programming approach. In the first part, we prove Lipschitz continuity, semiconcavity and semiconvexity of the value function under several sets of assumptions, and thus derive its $C^{1,1}$ regularity in the space variable. Based on this regularity result, we construct optimal feedback controls using the notion of the $B$-continuous viscosity solutions for the associated Hamilton--Jacobi--Bellman equation. This is done in the case when the noise coefficient is independent of the control variable. We also discuss applications of our results to optimal control problems governed by stochastic reaction-diffusion equations and, under economic motivations, stochastic delay differential equations.