Schrödinger operators with few bound states (Q2571159)

Consider, for a given potential \(V: {\mathbb Z} \rightarrow {\mathbb R}\), the discrete whole-line Schrödinger operator \(h_V\) on \(\ell^2({\mathbb Z})\) defined by \( [h_V\phi](n) = \phi(n+1)+\phi(n-1)+ V(n)\phi(n) \) as well as the similarly defined discrete half-line Schrödinger operator \(h_V^+\) on \(\ell^2({\mathbb Z}^+),\,\, {\mathbb Z}^+ = \{0,1,2, \dots \}\), with boundary condition \(\phi (-1)=0\). In [Acta Math. 193, 31--72 (2004; Zbl 1081.47027)], \textit{D. Damanik} and \textit{R. Killip} studied half-line Schrödinger operators \(h_V^+\) with spectrum contained in \([-2,2]\). The paper under review shows the following results. (1) There exists a half-line Schrödinger operator \(h_V^+\) which has zero as an eigenvalue, and bound states \(\{E_n\}\) obeying \(| E_n| -2 \leq c^n\) for some \(c<1\). (2) If the whole-line Schrödinger operator \(h_V\) has only finitely many bound states, it has purely absolutely continuous spectrum of multiplicity \(2\) on \([-2,2]\). (3) If \(Q\) and \(V\) are functions on \({\mathbb Z}^d\), \(d= 1\) or \(2\), such that \(h_Q\) has a bounded positive ground state and both \(h_{Q \pm V}\) are bounded above by the ground state energy of \(h_Q\), which in the discrete case is defined to be the supremum of the spectrum, then \(V \equiv 0\). Results analogous to (2) and (3) are also proved for the continuum Schrödinger operators \(H_V\), respectively, in \(L^2({\mathbb R})\) and \(L^2({\mathbb R}^d)\), \(d= 1\) or \(2\). The authors mention that the present paper is motivated by a result of \textit{R. Killip} and \textit{B. Simon} [Ann. Math. 158, 253--321 (2003; Zbl 1050.47025)] saying that the one-dimensional \(h_V\) has spectrum \([-2,2]\) if and only if \(V \equiv 0\), although this does not hold in three or more dimensions. From the continuum analogue of (3), the authors deduce the following Corollary: If \(Q\) is periodic, if \(V \in L^2_{loc}({\mathbb R}^d)\) and both \(H_{Q \pm V}\) are bounded below by the ground state energy of \(H_Q\), then \(V \equiv 0\). In particular, this corollary with \(d=1\) and \(Q \equiv 0\) yields the continuum analogue of the above Killip--Simon result, and its discrete analogue holds as well, thus extending the original Killip--Simon result to the periodic background case.