The degree of ill-posedness of composite linear ill-posed problems with focus on the impact of the non-compact Hausdorff moment operator (Q2672203)

Let \(X\), \(Y\), and \(Z\) be general Hilbert spaces, let \(D:X\to Z\) be a compact linear operator with an infinite-dimensional range, and let \(B:Z\to Y\) be a bounded non-compact linear operator with a non-closed range. Given the maps \(B\) and \(D\), let \(A:B\circ D:X\to Y\) be the composite compact linear operator with an infinite-dimensional range. This article focuses on studying the linear ill-posed operator equation \(Ax=y.\) For compact operator equations, the measure of the degree of ill-posedness is often explored by studying the decay rate of the singular values. The authors adopt a similar approach and analyze the impact of the non-compact outer operator \(B\) on the decay of the singular values of the compact operator \(B\circ D.\) The authors begin with some general results associating conditional stability estimates to the deterioration of the singular numbers of the composition \(B\circ D\), and then give some conditional stability estimates for the composition with the Hausdorff moment operator for both the embedding operator and the integration operator. The forms of associated kernels and their smoothness are also studied. Novel improved upper bounds for the singular values of certain compositions are established. The paper is comprehensive in its treatment of the considered problems. The technical level of this article is quite high, and numerous illustrative remarks make it an enjoyable read. It will be a valuable resource to the inverse problems community.