Unconditionally Stable L1-2 FEMs for Nonlinear Schrödinger Equations with the Variable-Order Time-Fractional Derivative

This paper studies a nonlinear Schrödinger equation with a variable-order time-fractional derivative. Because classical L1 and L1-2 schemes are not directly applicable to variable-order fractional operators, an improved L1-2 discretization with dynamically updated convolution weights is developed based on the Coimbra-type definition, in which the fractional order is evaluated at the current time. By combining the proposed temporal approximation with the Galerkin finite element method for spatial discretization and a linearized extrapolation technique for the nonlinear terms, a fully discrete numerical scheme is constructed. The unconditional stability of the scheme is rigorously proven, and optimal error estimates are established under a mild time step restriction. Numerical experiments are presented to confirm the theoretical results and to demonstrate the effectiveness of the method in capturing the influence of time-dependent memory effects on wave propagation. A key numerical observation is that stronger memory effects may suppress wave packet evolution, which is qualitatively reminiscent of a Zeno-like inhibition phenomenon.