Constant boundary-value problems for \(p\)-harmonic maps with potential (Q2469970)

For a complete simply connected Riemannian manifold \(M\), let \(B_{\rho}(x_0)\) be the geodesic ball centered at \(x_0 \in M\) with radius \({\rho}\) and \(S_{\rho}(x_0)=\partial B_{\rho}(x_0)\) the geodesic sphere with radius \({\rho}\) and center at \(x_0\). Let \(r\) be the distance function from a point in \(M\) to \(x_0\). For any \(x\in S_{\rho}(x_0)\), take a local orthonormal frame \(\{e_i, {\partial}/{\partial r}\}\) with \(e_i\in T_x(S_{\rho}(x_0))\) for \(i=1,\dots ,m-1\). Through the Ricci operator \[ R\bigg(\frac{\partial}{\partial r} ,\cdot\bigg)\frac{\partial}{\partial r}\colon X\in T_x(S_{\rho}(x_0))\to R \bigg(\frac{\partial} {\partial r} ,X\bigg)\frac{\partial}{\partial r} \in T_x(S_{\rho}(x_0)) \] the characteristic values are \(\lambda _1,\dots, \lambda_{m-1}\), where \( R\) is the Riemannian curvature operator of \(M\). A Riemannian manifold \(M\) is said to satisfy Condition (A) if \[ \lambda_i \geq \sum_{j\neq i} \lambda_j,\hskip1cm \forall \;i, \;1 \leq i \leq m-1, \] is true for any point of \(M\). Examples of manifolds satisfying Condition (A) include space forms of non-positive curvatures and some manifolds of strictly negative sectional curvatures. The paper under review gives some Liouville-type results on \(p\)-harmonic maps with potential defined on complete, simply connected Riemannian manifolds with non-positive sectional curvature and satisfying Condition (A). The results can be viewed as generalizations of results on harmonic maps (\(p=2\) case) [\textit{Y.-L. Pan}, Chinese Ann. Math. Ser. A 18 (3), 307--312 (1997; Zbl 0888.58009)]; [\textit{H. Karcher} and \textit{J. C. Wood}, J. Reine. Angew. Math. 353, 165--180 (1984; Zbl 0544.58008)] and harmonic map with potential [\textit{Q. Chen}, J. Aust. Math. Soc., Ser. A 68, 145--154 (2000; Zbl 0956.58010)].