New solutions for Trudinger-Moser critical equations in \(\mathbb R^2\) (Q1048171)

Let \(\Omega\) be a bounded, smooth domain in \(\mathbb R^2\). The authors consider critical points of the Trudinger-Moser type functional \(J_{\lambda}(u)=\frac{1}{2} \int_{\Omega}|\nabla u|^2 - \frac{\lambda}{2}\int_{\Omega} e^{u^2}\) in \(H_0^1(\Omega)\), namely solutions of the boundary value problem \(\Delta u + \lambda u e^{u^2}=0\) with homogeneous Dirichlet boundary conditions, where \(\lambda>0\) is a small parameter. Given \(k \geq 1\) they find conditions under which there exists a solution \(u_{\lambda}\) which blows up at exactly \(k\) points in \(\Omega\) as \(\lambda\to 0\) and \(J_{\lambda}(u_{\lambda}) \to 2k\pi\). They find that at least one such solution always exists if \(k=2\) and \(\Omega\) is not simply connected. If \(\Omega\) has \(d \geq 1\) holes, in addition \(d+1\) bubbling solutions with \(k=1\) exist. These results are existence counterparts of a result by \textit{O. Druet} in [Duke Math. J. 132, No.~2, 217--269 (2006; Zbl 1281.35045)] which classifies asymptotic bounded energy levels of blow-up solutions for a class of nonlinearities of critical exponential growth, including this one as a prototype case.