Boundary regularity for the \(\overline{\partial}_b\)-Neumann problem. I (Q2434063)

The author studies \(L^2\) existence and boundary regularity of solutions to the \(\overline \partial_b\)-Neumann problem on certain simple model classes of strictly pseudoconvex CR manifolds. More precisely, let \((M,\Theta,J)\) be a pseudo-Hermitian manifold, \(M\) smooth, of real dimension \(2n+1\), \(\theta\) a nonvanishing \(1\)-form on \(M\), \(H=\operatorname{Ker}\theta\) and \(J : H \to H\) a smooth bundle map with \(J^2=-1\). Let \(\Omega\) be a bounded open set in \(M\) with smooth boundary. An important role is played by the characteristics points of \(\Omega\), i.e., \(x \in \partial \Omega\) is characteristic if the boundary is tangent to the distribution \(H\). The bilinear from \((X,Y) \mapsto d\theta (X,J,Y)\) on \(H\) is called the Leviform, and the structure is strictly pseudoconvex (spc) if the Leviform is positive definite. This ensures that there is an unique global vector field \(T\), the characteristic field such that \(T\lrcorner \Theta =1\) and \(T\lrcorner d\Theta =0\) (where, as usual \(\lrcorner\) denotes the internal product). A spc pseudo-Hermitian manifold with characteristic field \(T\) is said to be normal if \(\mathcal{L}_T J =0\). Now, the class of model examples, can be defined as follows: let \((N, J_N, \Theta_N)\) be a compact, normal, spc pseudo-Hermitian manifold of dimension \(2n-1\), \(n\geq 3\), \(\mathbb{U}=\{ w-t+is \in \mathbb{C}\), \(s>0 \}\) the upper half plane from model of the two-dimensional hyperbolic space, an \(M=\mathbb{U} \times N\), \(\Pi\), respectively, \(w\) the natural projection onto \(N\), respectively, onto \(\mathbb{U}\). In a natural way one can put a pseudo-Hermitian structure on \(M\), and viewed as a function on \(M\), \(w\) is CR. The author considers domains of the form: \(\Omega=D\times N \subset M\), with \(D\) a smooth bounded domain in \(\mathbb{U}\), s.t. (i) \(\Omega\) has no characteristic points (ii) \(\Omega\) admits a smooth defining function \(\rho\) depending only on the real an imaginary part of the CR function \(w\). Using harmonic analysis on the normal manifold \(N\), one can construct the partial Fourier transform for \(M\). For \(\nu >0\), denote by \(\nu_{\nu}^q\) the collection of smooth forms \(\{(\sqrt{\frac{2}{n}})s^{-\frac{\nu}{2}}\pi^{\ast}\sigma\), \(\sigma \in \nu^q\}\), where \(\nu^q\) is a countable collection of smooth \((0,q)\) forms, s.t. \(\nu^q\) is an orthonormal basis for \(L^2_{(0,q)}(N)\) with some supplementary properties [see \textit{N. Tanaka}, A differential geometric study on strongly pseudoconvex manifolds, Kinokuniya (1975; Zbl 0331.53025)]. Any \((0,q)\)-form \(\varphi\) on \(M\) splits naturally into the orthogonal sum of tangential and transverse forms (\(\varphi=\varphi^T +\Theta^0 \Lambda \varphi^\bot\); here \(\Theta^0=\frac{1}{2is} dw\), and a form \(\varphi\) is tangential if \(Y\lrcorner\varphi=0=\overline Y \lrcorner\varphi\) and transverse of \(Y\) is the unique smooth vector field on \(M\) such this \(\Pi_{\ast} Y=-\frac{i}{2}T_N\)). As for spc pseudo-Hermitian manifolds one can extend \(J\) trivially, and then introduce a canonical metric \(h_{\Theta}(X,Y)=d\Theta (X,J\overline Y)+\Theta(x)\Theta(\overline Y)\), Riemannian on \(TM\) and Hermitian on \(\mathbb{C}TM\) decomposed into \(^0T'\oplus ^0T''\oplus \mathbb{C}\). Set \(\Lambda_{\Theta}^{0,1}M=\{ \varphi \in \mathbb{C}T^{\ast}M : \varphi=0\) on \(^0T' \oplus \mathbb{C}T\}\) and extend it naturally to higher degree forms. Then, for \(\varphi \in L^2(\Lambda_{\Theta}^{0,q}(\Omega))\) the tangential partial Fourier components of \(q\) are \[ \varphi_{\sigma}^T(z)= \int_{w=c}\langle\varphi^T, \sigma\rangle s^{\nu}\Pi^{\ast}\,d^VN, \quad\text{for }\sigma \in \nu_{\nu}^q \] and the transverse Fourier components are given by an analogous formula, replacing \(\varphi^T\) by \(\varphi^\perp\) (for \(\sigma \in \nu_{\nu}^{q-1}\)). For \(\sigma \in \nu_{\nu}^q\), define recursively \(W_{\sigma}^k(D)\) to be the collection of all \(u \in W_{\sigma}^{k-1}(D)\) such that \(\|u\|^2_{W_{\sigma}^k(D)} := \|G(\sigma)u\|^2_{W_{\sigma}^{k-1}(D)} + \|W_{\sigma}u\|^2_{W_{\sigma}^{k-1}(D)} + \|\overline W_{\sigma}u\|^2_{W_{\sigma}^{k-1}(D)} < \infty\) and \(W_{\sigma}^1(D)\) being the collection of all \(u \in L^2(D)\) for which an analogous norm as above (\(W_{\sigma}^0(D)=L^2(D)\)) is finite. The operators \(\overline W_{\sigma}\) and \(W_{\sigma}\) (which are not conjugate operators) are defined explicitely and are unbound operators on \(L^2(D)\). The author proves that a \((0,q)\) from \(\varphi\) is in \(\text{Dom}(\square_b)\) iff \(\varphi_{\sigma}^T \in \text{Dom}(\overline W_{\sigma}^{\ast} \overline W_{\sigma})\) for all \(\sigma \in \nu_{\nu}^q\) and \(\varphi^+ \in \text{Dom}(\overline W_{\sigma}\overline W_{\sigma}^{\ast})\) for all \(\sigma \in \nu_{\nu}^{q-1}\). As for \((0,q)\) forms the \(k^{\text{th}}\)-order Folland-Stein norm \(\|\cdot\|_{S^k_\Theta (\Omega)}\) is equivalent to \((\|\varphi\|)^2=\sum_{\nu_{\nu}^q}\|\varphi_{\sigma}^T \|_{W_{\sigma}^k(D)}+ \sum_{\nu_{\nu}^{q-1}}\|p^{\perp}\|_{W_{\sigma}^k(D)}\), the study of the \(\overline\partial_b\)-Neumann problem on \(\Omega\) is reduced to the analysis of the separate infinite families of operators on the domain \(D\). Each family is elliptic in the interior but only the transverse family is elliptic up to the boundary. A weighted version of the Folland-Stein spaces is given by the spaces \(\nu^k S_{\Theta}^m(\Omega)\), defined recursively by \(\nu^0 S_{\Theta}^m(\Omega)=S_{\Theta}^m(\Omega)\), \(\nu^{kn} S_{\Theta}^m(\Omega)=\{ \varphi \in \nu^k S_{\Theta}^m(\Omega) \mid \rho \nabla_{[\varphi]}^{\varphi}, \nabla_{[T]}\varphi \in \nu^k S_{\Theta}^m(\Omega) \}\). \(\widetilde S_{\Theta}^{k,j}(\Omega)=\{ \varphi \in \nu^j S_m^k(\Omega) \mid \varphi^{\perp} \in {{S}^{\circ}}_{\Theta}^{k+j}, \nabla_{\widetilde Y} \varphi^T \in {{S}^{\circ}}_{\Theta}^{k+j-1}(\Omega) \}\), where \({{S}^{\circ}}_{\Theta}^j(\Omega)\) is the space of \((0,q)\) forms vanishing on the boundary of \(\Omega\). The author proves that if \(\Omega\) is a smoothly bounded domain in a spc CR manifold of dimension \(2n+1\) with \(n \geq 3\), of the type described before, and if \(1 \leq q \leq n-2\), the operator (on \((0,q)\) form) \( 1+\square_b : \widetilde S^{k,2}(\Omega) \to S^k(\Omega)\) is an isomorphism (when the Kohn-Rossi cohomology of the compact leaves vanishes at \((0,q)\) level, one can replace \(1+\square_b\) with \(\square_b\)). Under the same assumptions, for any \((0,q)\) from \(\xi \in L^2(\Omega)\), with \(\overline\partial_b \xi=0\) and \(\xi \perp \text{ker}(\square_b)\), the equation \(\overline\partial_b \varphi = \xi\) has an unique solution in \(\widetilde S^{0,1}(\Omega)\), if \(\xi \in S^k(\Omega)\), then \(\varphi \in \widetilde S^{k,1}(\Omega)\) and satisfies an uniform estimate.