Some non-selfadjoint problems on the circle (Q1584714)

The authors consider a linear second-order eigenvalue problem of the form \[ au''+bu'+cu+\lambda u=0, \] with \(a,b,c\) real functions on some closed interval \([x_1,x_2]\), \(a\geq\varepsilon>0\) for some \(\varepsilon>0\), with the periodic boundary condition \(u(x_1)=u(x_2)\) and \(\alpha_1u'(x_1)+\beta u(x_1) =\alpha_2(x_2)\). The aim of the paper is to show the nonselfadjoint nature of the problem by looking at its spectrum. By a suitable change of the variable, the problem is rewritten in the form \[ w''+hw+\lambda r w=0, \quad w(1)=e^kw(0), \quad w'(1)=e^kw'(0) \] for some real-valued maps \(h,r:[0,1]\to \mathbb{R}\) and some real constant \(k\). The main results proven in the paper are the following. For \(k\neq 0\) and \(r(t)>0\), if \(h,r\) are of bounded variation in \(\left]0,1\right[\), then there exist infinitely many eigenvalues of the problem. Under the same assumptions, there exists \(k_0>0\) such that for each \(k >k_0\) there is only one real eigenvalue of the problem. If \(k\neq 0\), \(h\) of bounded variation in \(]0,1[\) and \(r\) of class \(C^2\) with \(r(0)=r(1)\) and \(r'(0)=r'(1)\), then there are only a finite number of real eigenvalues for the problem. If \(h,r\) are Lebesgue integrable and \(k\neq 0\) then all eigenvalues of the problem have the geometric multiplicity equal to one; the nonreal eigenvalues have also the algebraic multiplicity equal to one. Furthermore, under the integrability assumption for \(h\) and \(r\), all eigenvalues of the problem have the algebraic multiplicity at most two.