Second order smoothness of weak solutions of degenerate linear equations (Q1745643)

Consider an equation \[ \sum_{k=1}^m Y_k' Y_k u = b \] on a bounded open \(n\)-dimensional Euclidean set. The author finds conditions under which the solution \(u\) has weak second order derivatives \(ZY_k u\) and \(Y_kZu\) in \(L^2\). Here \(Y_k\) and \(Z\) are first order vector field derivatives, \(Z = U \cdot \nabla\) with \(U \in C^{1,1}\) and \(Y_k\) share the same regularity. More precise assumptions are that \(b \in L^2\) with a weak derivative \(Zb \in L^2\), and the solution \(u\) has to have weak \(Y\)-derivatives in \(L^2\). Furthermore, there needs to exist a sequence of smooth functions \(u_l\), which converges to \(u\) in terms of the \(H^{1,2}_Y\) norm with the weak vector field derivative \(Y\), and which satisfies \[ \limsup_{l \to \infty} \left( \int \left| \left\{ \sum_{k} |W_k(x)| + U(x) \right\}\nabla u_l(x) \right|^2 d x \right)^{1/2} < \infty. \] Here \(U\) is defined by \(Z = U \cdot \nabla\) and \(W\) by \(Y = W \cdot \nabla\). There is also a local control of the \(L^2\) norm of \(ZY_k u\) in terms of the above limit superior. As a corollary one has a similar result for \(Y_kZu\). Also, for the solutions \(u\) of the linear equations \[ \nabla \cdot (Q\nabla u) = b, \] where the rows of the square root of the symmetric non-negative definite matrix \(Q\) are Lipschitz vectors, one gets that the iterated derivatives \(ZX_iu\) and \(X_i Z u\) exist under similar assumptions as before, and when \(X\) is related to the square root of the matrix \(Q\). As Remark 2.5 the paper contains an erratum to the autor's paper [Acta Math. Sin., Engl. Ser. 34, No. 1, 42--62 (2018; Zbl 1393.35054)], stating that the global result given therein is actually local.