Spectral properties of polyharmonic operators with limit-periodic potential in dimension two (Q2479629)

Consider a polyharmonic operator \(H = (-\Delta)l + V (x)\) in dimension two with \(l \geq 6, l\) being an integer, and a limit-periodic potential \(V (x)\). It has been proved that the spectrum of H contains a semiaxis and there is a family of generalized eigenfunctions at every point of this semiaxis with the following properties. First, the eigenfunctions are close to plane waves \(\exp( i ( k,x))\) at the high energy region. Second, the isoenergetic curves in the space of momenta \(\vec k\) corresponding to these eigenfunctions have the form of slightly distorted circles with holes (Cantor type structure). The one dimensional analogue of the operator \(H\) with \(l=1\) has already been investigated. It is shown that the spectrum of the operator \(H^{(1)}u = -u\times^{3}\times^{3}+ Vu\) is generically a Cantor type set. It has positive Lebesgue measure. The spectrum is absolutely continuous.Generalized eigenfunctions can be represented in the form \(exp(ikx)u(x), u(x)\) being limit-peridic.