Comparison of eigenvalues for Sturm-Liouville boundary value problems on a measure chain (Q1827191)

Let \(T\) be a closed set in \(\mathbb{R}\) called a time scale. The function \(\sigma:T\to \mathbb{R}\) defined by \(\sigma(t)=\inf\{s\in T;s>t\}\), \(t\in T\), is called the right jump operator. If \(x:T\to \mathbb{R}\) is a function, define the delta-derivative of \(x\) in the point \(t\in T\), denoted \(x^\Delta(t)\), \(t\in T\), to be the number, when it exists, such that \[ (\forall\varepsilon>0) (\exists U\in{\mathcal V}(t)) (\forall s\in U) (| x( \sigma(t))-x(s)-x^\Delta(t) (\sigma(t)-s)| \leq \varepsilon|\sigma(t)-s|) \] where \({\mathcal V}(t)\) is the system of neighbourhoods of the point \(t\in T\). The second delta-derivative of \(x\) in the point \(t\in T\) is \(x^{\Delta^2} (t)= (x^\Delta)^\Delta (t)\), and the third delta-derivative and beyond are defined in the same way. Consider \(T\subset[0,1]\) and \(0\in T\), \(1\in T\) and use the same notation \([0,1]\) for the set \(\{t\in T;\;0\leq t\leq 1\}\subset T\). The authors study a class of even-ordered linear differential equations \[ (-1)^mx^{\Delta^{2m}}(t)= \lambda \sum^{m-1}_{i=0}p_i(t) x^{\Delta^{2 i}} \bigl(\sigma(t)\bigr),\quad t\in[0,1],\;m\in N \] with Sturm-Liouville boundary conditions \[ \begin{gathered} \alpha_ix^{\Delta^{2i}}(0) \beta_i x^{\Delta^{2i +1}}(0)=0\\ \gamma_i x^{\Delta^{2i}} \bigl(\sigma(1)\bigr)+ \delta_i x^{\Delta^{2 i+1}}\bigl(\sigma(1)\bigr)=0\end{gathered} \] where \(\alpha_i\geq 0\), \(\beta_i \geq 0\), \(\gamma_i\geq 0\), \(\delta_i\geq 0\), \(0\leq i\leq m\). The authors establish the existence of smallest positive eigenvalues \(\lambda_1\) and \(\lambda_2\) where \[ \begin{gathered} (-1)^m x^{\Delta^{2m}} (t)=\lambda_1\sum^{m-1}_{i=0} p_i(t)x^{ \Delta^{2i}} \bigl(\sigma(t)\bigr),\\ (-1)^mx^{\Delta^{2m}}(t) = \lambda_2 \sum^{m-1}_{i=0}q_i(t)x^{\Delta^{2i}} \bigl(\sigma(t) \bigr), \end{gathered} \] where \(t\in[0,1]\) and develop a statement of comparison of \(\lambda_1\) and \(\lambda_2\). Suppose that the functions \((-1)^ip_i\) and \((-1)^i q_i\), \(0\leq i\leq m\), are right-dense continuous nonnegative functions defined on \(T\), \(p_i\) and \(q_i\) do not vanish simultaneously on any subinterval of \([0,1]\) and \(0<(-1)^i p_i(t) \leq(-1)^iq_i(t)\), \(t\in[0,1]\), \(1\leq i\leq m\).