An example of non-convex minimization and an application to Newton's problem of the body of least resistance (Q5936378)

The authors consider the minima of the enery \(\int_\Omega f(\nabla u) dx\), where \(\Omega\) is a domain in \(\mathbb{R}^2\). In contrast to the standard variational calculus the integrand \(f: \mathbb{R}^2\to \mathbb{R}^+\) is not assumed to be convex, and minimizers are sought within the class of all convex functions \(u: \Omega\to [0,1]\). A typical example is given by \(f(p)= 1/(M^2+|p|^2)\) corresponding to Newton's model of a body of minimal resistance. Under certain technical conditions of \(f\) -- being satisfied in Newton's example -- the authors show that there exists no open subset of \(\Omega\) on which a minimizer is strictly convex.