A maximum problem of S.-T. Yau for variational \(p\)-capacity (Q1707416): Difference between revisions

For an arbitrary set \(E\) of the Euclidean \(n\)-space \(\mathbb R^n\), the variational \(p\)-capacity \(\mathrm{pcap}(E)\), with \(1\leq p<n\), is defined by \[ \mathrm{pcap}(E)=\underset{\mathrm{open }U\supseteq E}{\mathrm{inf}} \left(\underset{\mathrm{compact }K\subseteq U}{\sup}\mathrm{pcap}(K)\right), \] where \[ \mathrm{pcap}(K)=\mathrm{inf}\left\{\underset{\mathbb R^n}{\int}|\nabla f|^pd\mathcal L^n: f\in C_0^{\infty}(\mathbb R^n),\, f\geq 1_K\right\} \] with \(d\mathcal L^n\) denoting the usual \(n\)-dimensional Lebesgue measure and \(1_K\) being the characteristic function of \(K\). When \(n\geq 2\), it is known that \[ \mathrm{1cap}(A)=\mathrm{Area}(\partial A)\quad\text{ for all }A\in\mathscr{C}^n, \] where \(\mathscr{C}^n\) is the set of all compact and convex subsets of \(\mathbb R^n\). In this paper, the author considers the maximum problem: \[ \sup\left\{\underset{A}\int hd\mathcal L^n-\mathrm{pcap}(A):A\in\mathscr{C}^n\right\} \] as a restriction or variant of Yau's problem: Let \(h\) be a real-valued function on \(\mathbb R^3\). Find (reasonable) conditions on \(h\) to insure that one can find a closed surface with prescribed genus in \(\mathbb R^3\) whose mean curvature (or curvature) is given by \(h\). Using the semidiameter of a convex closed hypersurface in \(\mathbb R^n\), \(n\geq 2\), as a sharp upper bound of the variational \(p\)-capacity radius, where \(1<p<n\), he settles the above problem.