Properties of optimizers of the principal eigenvalue with indefinite weight and Robin conditions (Q514262)

The authors analyze a free boundary/shape optimization governed by the linear eigenvalue with indefinite weight \[ \Delta \varphi + \lambda m\varphi = 0\;\text{in}\,\Omega,\;\;\partial_n\varphi+\beta \varphi=0\;\text{on}\,\partial\Omega, \] where \(\Omega\) is a bounded open and connected set in \(\mathbb{R}^N\) with Lipschitz boundary \(\partial\Omega\) and the weight \(m\) is a bounded measurable function changing sign in \(\Omega\) i.e. \(\Omega_m^+= \{x\in \Omega:\,m(x)>0\}\) has a measure strictly between \(0\) and \(|\Omega|\) and fulfils \(-1\leq m(x)\leq \kappa\;\text{a.e.}\,x\in \Omega,\;\kappa>0.\) The optimization problem has the form \[ \inf_{m\in \mathcal{M}}\lambda(m),\;\mathcal{M}=\left\{m\in L^{\infty}:-1\leq m\leq \kappa,\;|\Omega_m^+|>0,\;\int_\Omega m\geq -m_0|\Omega|\right\}. \] The biological motivation for considering such a problem is formulated.