The soap bubble theorem and a \(p \)-Laplacian overdetermined problem (Q2286205)

The authors study a relation between Alexandrov's Soap Bubble Theorem and the \(p\)-torsion problem with \(p \in (1,2)\) in a bounded \(C^{2,\alpha}\)-smooth domain \(\Omega\). It is shown that the mean curvature of \(\partial \Omega\) is constant if and only if the \(p\)-torsion function is radial, which is possible if and only if \(\Omega\) is a ball. Notice that the first equivalence is obtained without the usage of Alexandrov's Theorem. Thus, this result can be seen as an alternative proof of Alexandrov's Theorem. Moreover, the validity of assumption that the critical set of the \(p\)-torsion function has zero measure, which is required in the main theorem, can be guaranteed by the result of \textit{H. Lou} [Chin. Ann. Math., Ser. B 29, No. 5, 521--530 (2008; Zbl 1153.35044)]. Pointwise upper and lower bounds on the normal derivative of the \(p\)-torsion function on \(\partial \Omega\) are presented, and certain stability issues are also discussed.