Uniform estimates of the fundamental solution for a family of hypoelliptic operators (Q2503157)

Let \(X_1,\dots, X_m\) be smooth real vector fields on an open set \(\Omega\subset\mathbb{R}^n\) satisfying the Hörmander bracket condition for \(C^\infty\)-hypoellipticity \[ \text{ran}\{X_1,\dots, X_m\}(x)= n\quad\text{for all }x\in\Omega, \] where \(\{X_1,\dots, X_m\}\) denotes the Lie algebra generated by the vector fields. In applications it is necessary to replace the \(C^\infty\)-hypoelliptic operator \(L= \sum^m_{k=1} X^2_k\) by elliptic regularizations. One example is \[ L_\varepsilon= L+ \varepsilon^2 \sum^p_{k=m+1} X^2_k, \] where the vector fields \(X_1,\dots, X_p\) span the tangent space at \(x\) for every \(x\in\Omega\). Thus \(L_\varepsilon\) is uniformly elliptic in \(\Omega\). The goal of the authors is to derive some a-priori estimates for the fundamental solution \(\Gamma_\varepsilon= \Gamma_\varepsilon(x, y)\) depending on a control distance \(d_\varepsilon= d_\varepsilon(x,y)\) associated to \(L_\varepsilon\). The main result is an interior estimate of \(\Gamma_\varepsilon\) and of \(X_{k_1}\cdots X_{k_p}\Gamma_\varepsilon\). The deependence on \(\varepsilon\) is described. The main tool of the proof is a lifting method has been introduced by Rothschild and Stein. The result is used to obtain interior estimates for weak solutions of \(L_\varepsilon u= f\).