Positive solutions of a general discrete boundary value problem (Q2465159)

The problem of existence of positive solutions is considered for the system of difference equations \(\Delta^2u_{k-1}+\lambda f_k(u_k)=0,\quad k=1,2,\dots,n,\) with the boundary conditions, \(u_0=g(u_m)\), \(u_{n+1}=h(u_l),\) where \(f_k, f, g\in C(\mathbb R^+,\mathbb R^+)\), and \(m,l\in \{1,2,\dots,n\}\). Under some conditions, the authors show that there exists a positive number \(\lambda^*\) such that the system has at least one positive solution for each \(\lambda>\lambda^*\). The well-known Krasnoselskii fixed point theorem plays a key role in the proofs of the main results.