Eremenko's extremal problem on harmonic functions (Q4354205)

Let \(U\) be the open unit disc in the complex plane \(C\). Let \((u_1,u_2)\) be a couple of functions \(u_1,u_2\) harmonic in \(U\). Suppose that this couple has the least harmonic majorant \(v\) and the greatest harmonic minorant \(w\) with \(w(0)\geq 0\). Let \(F\) be the class of all such couples \((u_1,u_2)\). For \(r>0\), let \(D_r:= \{z\in C:| z|\leq r\}\). A. Eremenko proved the following result: \(3-2\sqrt{2}\leq R\leq 2-\sqrt{3}\). He also posed the extremal problem: to find \(R\), and conjectured that \(R=2-\sqrt{3}\). We establish the following result solving Eremenko's problem and showing that the mentioned conjecture fails: \[ R=3-2\sqrt{2}. \] We also establish the following result in which \(P(z,b):= \text{Re}[(b+z)/(b-z)]\) is the Poisson kernel with \(z\in U\), \(b\in\partial U\): For every couple \((u_1,u_2)\in F\) with \(u_1\neq u_2\) at least one of the components \(u_1\) or \(u_2\) is strictly positive on \(D_R\). If \(u_1(0)> u_2(0)\), then \(u_1>0\) on \(D_R\). If \(u_1(0)= u_2(0)\) and \(u_1\) is not strictly positive on \(D_R\), then there is \(b\in\partial U\) such that \(u(Rb)=0\) and \[ u_1(z)= u_1(0) [P(z,b)- (1/2)P(z,-b)],\;\forall z\in U,\qquad u_1(z)>0,\;\forall z\in D_r\setminus \{Rb\}. \] Moreover, theorems 1 and 2 are extended in the following directions: to classes of function couples wider than \(F\), to collections of \(n\) harmonic functions (with any integer \(n\geq 2\)), no functions harmonic in the unit ball of the Euclidean space \(R^m\) (with any integer \(m\geq 2\)).