Definiteness of the Peano Kernel Associated with the Polyharmonic Mean Value Property (Q4520443)

For integers \(p,d\) with \(p\geq 1\) and \(d\geq 2\) let \(\Delta^p\) denote the \(p\)th iterated Laplacian operator on \(\mathbb{R}^d\), and let \(H_p(D)= \{f: \Delta^pf= 0\) on \(D\}\), where \(D\) is a domain in \(\mathbb{R}^d\). If a function \(f\) is real-valued and continuous at least on the boundary \(\partial B(r)\) of the open ball \(B(r)\) of centre 0 and radius \(r\) in \(\mathbb{R}^d\), then \(M(f,r)\) denotes the mean value of \(f\) on \(\partial B(r)\). It is well known that if \(r_1,\dots, r_p\) are numbers such that \(0< r_p<\dots< r_1\), then there exist numbers \(\lambda_1,\dots, \lambda_p\) such that \(f(0)= \sum_{j=1}^p \lambda_j M(f,r_j)\) for every function \(f\in C(\overline{B(r_1)})\cap H_p (B(r_1))\). Let \(L\) denote the linear functional defined on \(C(\overline{B(r_1)})\) by \(L(f)= f(0)- \sum_{j=1}^p \lambda_j M(f,r_j)\). The Peano kernel for \(L\) is a function \(K_p\) on \(B(r_1)\) with the property that \[ L(f)= \int_{B(r_1)} K_p(x) \Delta^p f(x) dx \] for every \(f\in C^{2p} (\overline{B(r_1)})\). The authors give a formula for \(K_p\) in terms of the fundamental solution of the polyharmonic equation \(\Delta^p f=0\). The main result in the paper asserts that \(K_p\) has constant sign: in fact \((-1)^p K_p> 0\) on \(B(r_1)\).