Nonlinear, nonhomogeneous periodic problems with no growth control on the reaction (Q2352270)

The aim of this paper is to prove multiplicity theorems providing precise sign information for all the solutions of the nonlinear periodic problem \[ \begin{aligned} & -(a(|u'(t)|)u'(t))' = f(t,u(t))\quad \text{ a.e. on } T=[0,b], \\ & u(0)=u(b), u'(0)=u'(b),\end{aligned}\eqno{(1.1)} \] where the differential operator \(a\) is in general nonhomogeneous and incorporates as special cases the scalar \(p\)-Laplacian, the scalar \((p, q)\)-Laplacian and the scalar generalized \(p\)-mean curvature differential operator. Precisely, the hypotheses on the map \(a\) are the following: \(\underline{H(a)}\) \(\quad a : (0,+\infty) \to (0,+\infty)\) is a \(C^1\)-function, such that {\parindent=6mm \begin{itemize}\item[(i)] the function \(\zeta \to a(\zeta )\zeta\) is strictly increasing on \((0,+\infty)\) and \[ \lim_{\zeta\to 0^+} a(\zeta )\zeta = 0,\quad\text{ and}\quad \lim_{\zeta \to 0^+} \frac{a'(\zeta )\zeta}{a(\zeta )}= c > -1; \] \item [(ii)] there exist \(c_0 > 0\) and \(p \in (1,+\infty)\), such that \[ c_0|\zeta |^{p-1} \leq a'(|\zeta |)\zeta^2\quad \forall\,\zeta \in\mathbb{R}; \] \item[(iii)] there exists \(c_1 > 0\) such that \[ \left| a(|\zeta |)\zeta \right|\leq c_1 \left(1 + |\zeta |^{p-1}\right) \quad\forall\zeta \in\mathbb{R}; \] \item[(iv)] if \[ G_0(t) = \int^t_0 a(s)s \,ds \quad \forall\,t > 0, \] \end{itemize}} then \[ pG_0(\zeta ) - a(\zeta )\zeta^2 \geq -\tilde{c}\quad\forall\,\zeta\geq 0, \] \(\quad\quad\quad \)with \(\tilde{c} > 0\) and there exists \(\tau \in (1, p)\) such that \[ \lim_{t\to 0^+}\frac{G_0(t)}{t^\tau}= 0. \] The following Banach spaces are used \[ W={W^{1,p}_{\text{per}} (0, b) = \{u \in W^{1,p}(0, b) : u(0) = u(b)\}, }\atop{ \widehat{C}^1(T ) = C^1(T) \cap W;\quad \widehat{C}_+(T )=\{u\in \widehat{C}^1(T ): u(t)\geq 0 \; \; \text{for all}\; t\in T\} } \] and the reaction function \(f(t,\xi)\) satisfies \(H(f_1)\). \(\quad f : T\times\mathbb{R} \to\mathbb{R}\) is a Carathéodory function, such that \(f (t, 0) = 0\) for almost all \(t \in T\) and {\parindent=6mm \begin{itemize} \item[(i)] for every \(\varrho > 0\), there exists \(a_\varrho \in L^1(T )_+\), such that \[ \bigl|f (t, \zeta)\bigr|\leq a_\varrho(t)\quad\text{ for almost all} \; t \in T,\;\text{all} \; |\zeta | \leq \varrho; \] \item [(ii)] there exist functions \(w_{\pm} \in W\), such that \[ w_{-}(t) \leq c_{-} < 0 < c_{+} \leq w_+(t)\quad \forall\, t \in T, \] \[ f (t,w_+(t)) \leq 0 \leq f (t,w_{-}(t))\quad\text{ for a.a.} \; t \in T \] and \[ A(w_{-}) \leq 0 \leq A(w_+)\quad\text{in} \; W^{\ast}; \] \item [(iii)] there exist \(\delta_0 \in (0, \min\{c_{+},-c_{-}\})\) and \(T_0 \subseteq T\) with \(|T_0|_1 > 0\), such that \[ \left\{ {f (t, \zeta)\zeta \geq 0 \quad\text{for almost all}\; t \in T,\;\text{all}\; |\zeta | \leq \delta_0,\qquad }\atop{\,f (t, \zeta)\zeta > 0 \quad\text{for almost all}\; t \in T_0,\;\text{all}\; 0< |\zeta | \leq \delta_0;} \right. \] \item [(iv)] there exists \(\xi_{\ast} > 0\), such that \[ f (t, \zeta)\zeta + \xi_{\ast}|\zeta |^{p}\geq 0\quad\text{ for almost all}\; t \in T,\quad\text{all}\; \zeta \in [-m_{\ast},m_{\ast}], \] where \(m_\ast = \max\{\|w_+\|_\infty, \|w_{-}\|_\infty\}\). \end{itemize}} The authors establish the following main results of this paper. {Proposition 3.3} \, If hypotheses \(H(a)\) and \(H(f_1)\) hold, then problem (1.1) has at least one nontrivial positive solution \(u_0 \in \text{int} \widehat{C}_{+}\) and at least one nontrivial negative solution \(v_0 \in -\text{int} \widehat{C}_{+}\). { Proposition 3.4} \, If hypotheses \(H(a)\) and \(H(f_1)\) hold, then problem (1.1) has the smallest nontrivial positive solution \(u_{\ast}\in\text{int}\widehat{C}_{+}\) and the biggest nontrivial negative solution \(v_{\ast} \in -\text{int} \widehat{C}_{+}\). In the next part authors use these extremal nontrivial constant sign solutions and restrict further the behaviour of \(f (t,\cdot)\) near zero to produce a nodal (sign changing) solution. To prove these results, the authors use variational methods coupled with suitable truncation and comparison techniques.