Variational formula for Dirichlet forms and estimates of principal eigenvalues for symmetric \(\alpha\)-stable processes (Q1775511)

Let \(X\) be a locally compact separable metric space and let \(m\) be a positive Radon measure such that \(\text{supp}(m)=X\). Further, let \({M}=(\Omega, X_t, P_x)\) be an \(m\)-symmetric Markov process on \(X\) with the associated Dirichlet form \(({\mathcal E}, {\mathcal D}({\mathcal E}))\). The main result of the paper is the following extended variational formula for the Dirichlet form: \[ {\mathcal E}(f,f)=-\inf_{u\in {\mathcal D}^+(\widehat{A}),\;\varepsilon >0} \, \int_X {{\widehat{A}u}\over{u+\varepsilon}}\, f^2\, dm,\quad f\in {\mathcal D}({\mathcal E}),\;f\geq 0\;m\text{-a.e.} \] Here \(\widehat{A}\) denotes the extended generator of the semigroup of \({M}\) and \({\mathcal D}^+(\widehat{A})\) the set of nonnegative function in the domain of \(\widehat{A}\). The authors give two applications of this formula. The first one is a lower bound estimate for the bottom of the spectrum of \({M}\). The second one is a new proof of the \(L^2\)-inequality \[ \int_X f^2\, d\mu\leq \| G\mu\| _{\infty}{\mathcal E}(f,f),\quad f\in {\mathcal D}({\mathcal E}), \] where \(\mu\) is a Radon measure charging no sets of zero capacity and \(G\mu\) denotes the potential of \(\mu\).