Nonlinear Analysis, Theory. Methods & Applicahons, Vol. 17, No. 9, pp. 833-439, 1991. Printed in Great Britain.
0
0362-546X/91 WOO+ .OO 1991 Pergamon Press plc
A NEW POINCARii INEQUALITY AND ITS APPLICATION TO THE REGULARITY OF MINIMIZERS OF INTEGRAL FUNCTIONALS WITH NONSTANDARD GROWTH TEAK BHATTA~H~YA Department of Mathematics, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL 60208, U.S.A.
and FRANCESCOLEONETTI Dipartimento di Matematica Pura ed Applicata, Universit& degli Studi di L’Aquila, 67100 L’Aquila, Italy (Received 30 July 1990; received in revised form 23 October 1990; received for publication 20 February Key words and phrases:
Poincare inequality, integral functionals, minimizers, Morrey-regularity.
nonstandard
1991)
growth conditions,
INTRODUCTION LET s1 be
a bounded open subset of R”, n 1 2. Consider integral functionals of the type
mwx)l) dx
Z(u: i-2) = j
where u:a+RN, satisfy
Nr
(0.1)
61
1, is vector valued and F: [0, w) -+ [O,w) is continuous. atP - b (c F(t) I ctq + d
vtzo,
Let F also (0.2)
where a, b, c and d are positive constants. The regularity of minimizers of (0.1) in the case has been studied in great detail [2]. In recent years, there has been some attention focused on the case of p < 4; this is often referred to in the literature as a “nonstandard growth condition” [3, 81. In this work we present a result in the regularity theory of minimizers in this framework. We must point out that our result relies strongly on a new version of a PoincarC inequality on annular domains. This inequality may have some independent interest in itself. We have organized the work as follows: the statement of the results appear in Section 1; in Section 2 we prove the PoincarC inequaIity, and the proof of the regularity theorem appears in Section 3.
p = q
1. MAIN
RESULTS
Let x0 E R” and Q&O, R) = {x E R”: /Xi - x:1 < R/2, i = 1,2, . . . , n) the cube in R” of edge length R and centered at x0. We will often suppress x0 and write QR instead of Q&O, R) whenever there is no danger of confusion. By a minimizer of (0.1) we mean a function U: Q -+ RN, N 2 1, u E W’*‘(Q) with F(tDul) E J%V
i(u: Q) 5 Z(u + 56:Q)
and
for every cube Q contained in !A and every 4: IR -+ RN with 9 E W:*‘(Q). 833
(1.1)
T. BHATTACHARYA and F. LEONETTI
834
We study (0.1) for functions F that satisfy F: [0, co) + [0, a),
continuous,
convex, F f 0 and F(0) = 0;
there exists a number (T > 0 such that F(2t) I aF(t) v t L 0.
(1.2a) (1.2b)
The condition (1.2b) is referred to in the literature as the AZ condition [5]; it is not difficult to see that the aforementioned conditions imply that F is nondecreasing, o 1 2, v t, s 2 0,
F(t + s) 5 ; (F(t) + F(s))
(1.3)
and F(l)(t - 1) I F(t) 5 0F(l)(t’og”“og2
+ 1)
vtzo.
(1.4)
It is clear such an F satisfies nonstandard growth in (0.2) with 1 = p 5 q = log a/log 2. Some examples of F included in this class are (a) F(t) = tP, p L 1,
(b)
F(t)
=
tP+'
v t E [O, 1)
tP(log t + 1)
v t E [l,a),p
z 1;
and for p > 1, 0 < E I (p - 1)/5, take
(c>
F(t)
=
eP-‘t
v t E [0, e)
fp+esinloglogl
v t E [e, CD).
The last example may be found in [l, lo]. From here on we reserve G to stand for the constant in (1.2b). We recall that a function h belongs to the Morrey space L’,‘(a) if there exists k > 0 such that ]/r(x)\ dx I kRx s DnQR for every QR centered in 0, with 0 < R I 2 diam a. We now state the main results of this paper. THEOREM
1. (Regularity of minimizers.) Let fi be a bounded open subset of Rn, n 2 2, and F satisfy (1.2a) and (1.2b). Let U: n + RN, N 2 1, be a minimizer of (0. l), then (1.5)
F(\Du]) E L:;,x@); furthermore,
the following estimate holds h F((Du(x)()cLx
1QS
I C s (>i ’
mwx)O
dx
(1.6)
QI
for every pair of parallel concentric cubes Q, c Q, c i2 with s < r, and where C, a are positive constants depending only on n, N and o. The proof of this result employs the “hole filling technique” [ 11,2, p. 1631; in order to apply such a device we need a version of the Poincare inequality holding in the annular region where QR c !A.Writing uB = #u(x) dx = l//B1 Je U(X)dx, we have theorem 2. A = QR\&,,,
Poincarb inequality and nonstandard
835
growth
(Poincare inequality.) Let x0 E R”, n 2 2, A the annular region Q(x”, R)\Q(x’, R/3), and F be a function satisfying (1.2a) and (1.2b). Let U: Sz -+ RN, N 2 1, u E W’~‘(Q(x”, R)) with F(IDul) E L’(Q(x’, R)), then
THEOREM
2.
(1.7) where C is a positive constant depending only on n, N and 0. We furnish a proof in Section 2. It must be mentioned that a similar inequality for n = 2 was proven in [6] by using a different technique. Thus the generalization obtained here extends the regularity result in [6] to R”, n L 2. We also remark here that the higher integrability results in [l] and [9] are deduced under restrictions on the orders of nonstandard growth p and q, namely p I q < np/(n - p). To obtain our result we place no restrictions on p and q. Let us point out that the convexity of F plays an important role in our analysis. 2. A POINCARI?
INEQUALITY
Before proving theorem 2 we need the following. LEMMA 1. Let Sz be a convex bounded open subset of R”, n 2 1; F: [O,oo) + [O,a) be continuous and convex with F(0) = 0. Let U: a -+ RN, N 2 1, be in IV’*‘(n) such that F(IDul) E L’(a). Then
3’.F(‘(~),
“fl’) dx I ($$)‘-“‘1,
F(lDu(x)I)
dw,
(2.1)
where d is the diameter of fi and o,, is the volume of the unit ball in R”. Proof. The proof is a generalization of the one given in [4] for the case F(t) = tP and we give a brief sketch below.
Step 1. We first prove (2.1) for u E C’(0). We argue as in lemma 7.16 [4], using that F is nondecreasing, convex and F(0) = 0, to obtain
for every x E a. Now using the theory of Riesz potential [4, lemma 7.121 we deduce (2.1). Step 2. For u E W’*‘(sZ) with F(IDul) E L’(Sl) we consider the usual mollification since F is nondecreasing and convex, F(I%(x)l)
5 IF(IDul)],(x).
This inequality permits us to conclude that F(]%])
+ F(]Dul)
in L:,,(a),
as E + 0.
u,. Again,
836
T. BHATTACHARYA and F. LEONETTI
Step 3. Now consider
the family
(C&J of subset of fi where &2,,= (X E a: dist(x, afi) > h),
and h is small enough; thus as h -+ 0, S&, -+ Sz. Furthermore, each &2,,is convex. For every fixed h and E, we have (2.1) for u, and C& . Letting first E -+ 0 and then h + 0, we obtain (2.1). n We state a simple lemma LEMMA
2.
regarding
averages.
Let S c T, then
(2.2) Proof. Now lu(x) - !.d,ldxs
lu(x) - !+ldx+
T
Ius-
s T
=
iT The last term on the right-hand
u,ldx
s T
It.&) - t.+I dx + lTllus - UTl.
side is estimated
as follows
n
Thus (2.2) follows.
The basic idea in proving theorem 2 is the following. We subdivide the annular region A into equal cubes of edge length a third of that of the enclosing cube. Any two cubes in A can be joined by a connected chain consiting of cubes taken from the subdivision, such that the union of any two contiguous cubes is a convex set. As a consequence, we may apply lemma 1.
Proof of theorem 2. Subdivide excluding
Q(%, R/3),
Q(x”, R) into 3” equal parallel
subcubes
Sk of edge length R/3;
we write 3n-1 A
=
Q(x’,
R)\Q(x’,
R/3) = u k=l
Noting
xklSkl/lAI
By monotonicity
= 1, it
fdOWS
and convexity
of F,
Sk.
(2.3)
PoincarC
uk = I&l/ IA 1 and integrating
Setting
Using lemma
inequality
and nonstandard
growth
837
over A, we obtain
1 for a = S,, monotonicity
and the A2 property,
where C, depends only on n, N and o. We now estimate the last integral on the right-hand side as follows. Observe that every pair of cubes Sj and S, may be joined by a connected chain of such cubes contained in A so that any two contiguous cubes of the chain have an (n - 1) hyperface in common. Such a requirement renders the union of two such continuous cubes a convex set. Let us remark that we can choose chains of this type consisting of no more than 6n cubes. For the pair Sj and Sk let Qr , Q2, . . . , Q, be an enumeration of the cubes in such a chain so that Sj = Qr , S, = Q,, Qi and Qi+l are contiguous in the sense described above and r I 6n. Setting Ui = uQ,, i = 1, 2, . . . , r, we have r-1
l”Cx)- url 5 l”Cx)- ull + 1 l”i - Ui+ll; i=l
applying
(1.3) r times,
where C, = (~r/2)~~-l.
Again
by lemma
we have
Thus
1,
(2.6) Foreveryi=
1,2,...,r-
I
(2.7) Now
838
setting
T. BHATTACHARYA and F. LEONETTI
Ei = LI~,~~,+, and using lemma
2, we have
1+
IQ;,"";"/
[u(x) - lil dx QiUQ,+l
I+1
56
lu(x) f Q,UQ,+I
noting
4 d-c
/Qi U Qi+ll = 2lQi I. Thus from (2.7)
I,,F(lU’ +;;+I’) dx
5
c3
l”;l+ll I’Q,uQL+, F(l”yy“‘>dx
,Qi
where we have used (1.2a), (1.2b) and IQr 1 = IQi 1, and C, depends Applying lemma 1 on the convex set Qi U Qi+l
only on n, N and 0.
where C, = C&n, N, a). Using (2.6) and (2.8) in (2.3,
The statement
of the theorem
now follows
from (2.4).
n
Remark. Theorem 2 continues to hold for any function G such that there is a function F satisfying (1.2a, b) with the ratio G/F bounded above and below by positive constants. This observation may be useful in studying nonconvex minimization problems. 3. PROOF
OF
THEOREM
1
Let Q(x’, r) be a cube in a and r: R” + R belong to C’,‘(a), Q(x’, r/3), q = 0 outside Q(x’, r) and l&l I c/r, where 4 = -V(U - <) where r = fQ,\Q,,, U. Then
0 5 q 5 1 such that q = 1 on C depends only on n. Set
n
F(bWI)
.i Q,
dx 5
0F(ID(u + d~)(x)I)
dx
Q,
522 s-
F((1 - rl(x))lWx)l)
+ F(IMx)l
I+)
- (1)
a 2
F(kWx)l)
do +
i,,,,,,,
+
‘“‘“‘,-
“)
q
9
Poincart
where we have used the properties integral
inequality
and nonstandard
of q, (1.2a)
F(IDu(x)))
Applying
NMx)l)
i.e. add (k - 1) SQr,SF(IDu(x)l)
2 on the last
d-C
dx to both sides resulting ~(D4x)l)
i Qr/3 Iterating
theorem
s Qr\Qr//,
Q,
now we “fill the hole”,
and (1.2b).
d.x I e
839
growth
in
d.x.
Q,
m times,
dx I
~mwl)
If s E (0, r], there is an integer
m such that r/3”+’
< s 5 r/3”’ and hence
where ,l = log(&(&
3. This estimate
F(IDu(x)()
d-.X.
Qr/3m
- l))/log
implies
F((Dul)
E L:;:(Q).
n
Acknowledgements-The
authors thank the referee for useful suggestions and remarks. This work was written while the second author was visiting Northwestern University on a C.N.R. grant. He wishes to thank the Department of Mathematics for its hospitality.
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Fumz. Appl. 5, 73-94 (1986). 10. TALENTI G., Boundedness of minimizers, Hokkaido math. J. 19, 259-279 (1990). 11. WIDMAN K. O., Holder continuity of solutions of elliptic systems, Manuscripta math. 5, 299-308 (1971).