Solutions with constant sign at infinity of a linear functional equation of infinite order (Q2566106)

The author considers the following equation and inequalities \[ \varphi(x)=\int_S \varphi(x+M(s))\sigma(ds) \tag{1} \] \[ \varphi(x)\geq \int_S \varphi(x+M(s))\sigma(ds)\tag{2} \] \[ \varphi(x)\leq \int_S \varphi(x+M(s))\sigma(ds)\tag{3} \] where \((S,\Sigma,\sigma)\) is a measure space with a finite measure \(\sigma\) and \(M:S \to \mathbb R\) is a \(\Sigma\)-measurable bounded function with \(\sigma(M \neq 0)>0\). A solution of (1) (respectively (2), (3)) is a Borel measurable real function \(\varphi\) defined on an interval of the form \((a,+\infty)\), Lebesgue integrable on every bounded subinterval of \((a,+\infty)\) and such that for every \(x>a+m\) (\(m=\sup\{| M(s)| : s \in S \}\)) the integral \(\int_S \varphi(x+M(s))\sigma(ds)\) exists and (1) (respectively (2), (3)) holds. The equation \[ \int_S e^{\lambda M(s)}\sigma(ds)=1 \tag{4} \] is called characteristic equation of (1). The paper contains various results relating the existence of solutions of (1), (2) and (3) having certain properties to the existence of certain kinds of roots of equation (4). A sample of the results is the following Theorem: If (2) has a solution a.e. positive, then (4) has a real root. If \(M \geq0\) a.e. and (1) has a solution a.e. positive and Lebesgue integrable, then (4) has a negative root.