A nonlinear parabolic equation with varying domain (Q1061308)

This paper considers the problem \(u_ t=\Delta u+f(\lambda,u)\) in \(\Omega_{\epsilon}\) \(\partial u/\partial n=0\) on \(\partial \Omega_{\epsilon}\) where \(0<\epsilon \leq 1\), \(\Omega_{\epsilon}\) is a domain in \(R^ n\) and \(\lambda\) a small real parameter. The objective is to discuss the equilibrium solutions and their stability as a function of (\(\lambda\),\(\epsilon)\) in a neighborhood of (0,0), when the domain \(\Omega_{\epsilon}\) increases in \(\epsilon\), \(| \Omega_{\epsilon}|\) is continuous in \(\epsilon\), \(| \Omega_{\epsilon}\setminus \Omega_ 0| \to 0\) as \(\epsilon\) \(\to 0\) and \(\Omega_ 0\) is the union of connected domains \(\Omega^ L_ 0\) and \(\Omega^ R_ 0\) with disjoint closures. The approach is a Lyapunov-Schmidt method devised as follows. For \(\Omega_ 0\), 0 is a double eigenvalue of the Laplacian with Neumann boundary conditions. Using some more assumptions on \(\Omega_{\epsilon}\), the discussion of the equilibrium solutions is reduced to a pair of bifurcation equations depending upon the parameter \(\epsilon\). The technical difficulties occur in showing the smoothness properties of the bifurcation equation.