On Zhang-Yang's open question about iterative roots of PM functions of height 1. I: Increasing case (Q6111123)

The paper deals with a question asked in 1983 by \textit{J. Zhang} and \textit{L. Yang} [Acta Math. Sin. 26, 398--412 (1983; Zbl 0529.39006)] on the existence of iterative roots for some class of piecewise monotone functions (PM functions) from an interval \(I:=[a,b]\) into itself. Denote by \(S(F)\) the set of all non-monotonic points of the function \(F\). It is known that the number \(N(F)=\#S(F)\) satisfies the relation \[ 0=N(F^0)\le N(F)\le N(F^2)\le\cdots \le N(F^n)\le \cdots \] and if \(N(F^k)=N(F^{k+1})\) for an integer \(k>0\), then \(N(F^k)=N(F^{k+i})\) for all integers \(i\ge 1\). The height of \(F\) is defined either as the least integer \(k\) such that \(N(F^k)=N(F^{k+1})\) or \(\infty\). J. Zhang and L. Yang [loc. cit.] proved that if \(H(F)=1\) there exists a maximal monotone subinterval of \(I\) covering the range of \(F\), called characteristic interval of \(F\) and denoted by \(K(F)\), such that some iterative roots of \(F\) can be constructed by continuous extension from \(K(F)\). For most of these extensions the following additional condition, denoted by \((K_0^+)\), is required: \(F\) on \(I\) cannot reach the endpoints \(a'\) and \(b'\) of \(K(F)\) unless \(F(a')=a'\) or \(F(b')=b'\). Consider now the following condition, say \((K^+)\): \(F\in PM(I,I)\) with \(H(F)=1\) and \(F\) is strictly increasing on the characteristic interval \(K(F)=[a',b']\). The authors deal with these two problems: (1) Does a function \(F\) with \((K^+)\) but not \((K_0^+)\) have an iterative root \(f\) of order \(n<N(F)\) strictly increasing on \(K(F)\) such that \(H(f)=n\)? (2) Does a function \(F\) with \((K^+)\) but not \((K_0^+)\) have an iterative root \(f\) of order \(n\) strictly decreasing on \(K(F)\) such that either \(2<n\le N(F)+1\) with \(H(f)=n-1\) or \(2\le n<N(F)\) with \(H(f)=n\)? They give positive and negative answers to these two problems, depending on the values assumed by the function \(F\) in the points of non-monotonicity.