Finite element methods developed for unfitted meshes have been widely applied to various interface problems. However, many of them resort to non-conforming spaces for approximation, which is a critical obstacle for the extension to $\textbf{H}(\text{curl})$ equations. This essential issue stems from the underlying Sobolev space $\textbf{H}^s(\text{curl};\,\Omega)$, and even the widely used penalty methodology may not yield the optimal convergence rate. One promising approach to circumvent this issue is to use a conforming test function space, which motivates us to develop a Petrov–Galerkin immersed finite element (PG-IFE) method for $\textbf{H}(\text{curl})$-elliptic interface problems. We establish the Nédélec-type IFE spaces and develop some important properties including their edge degrees of freedom, an exact sequence relating to the $H^1$ IFE space and optimal approximation capabilities. We analyse the inf-sup condition under certain assumptions and show the optimal convergence rate, which is also validated by numerical experiments.

The homotopy groups of a finite partially ordered set (poset) can be described entirely in the context of posets, as shown in a paper by $\text{B}$. Larose and $\text{C}$. Tardif. In this paper we describe the relative version of such a homotopy theory, for pairs $\left( X,\,A \right)$ where $X$ is a poset and $A$ is a subposet of $X$. We also prove some theorems on the relevant version of the notion of weak homotopy equivalences for maps of pairs of such objects. We work in the category of reflexive binary relational structures which contains the posets as in the work of Larose and Tardif.