Compact surfaces with boundary with prescribed mean curvature depending on the Gauss map (Q6114471)

Let \(\mathcal{H}\) be a \(C^1\) function defined on the unit sphere \(\mathbb{S}^2\). An immersed oriented surface \(M\) in \(\mathbb{R}^3\) is called an \(\mathcal{H}\)-surface if its mean curvature \(H_M\) satisfies \(H_m(p)=\mathcal{H}(N_p)\), \(p\in M\), where \(N\) is the Gauss map of \(M\). The authors investigate the geometry of such surfaces. Various results are presented, both for closed surfaces, and for surfaces with boundary. Most previous work on problems of this type has been restricted to constant mean curvature surfaces, or to surfaces arising in mean curvature flow, such as translating solitons and other solitons. First, using maximum principle arguments, the authors show there are no closed \(\mathcal{H}\)-surfaces, if \(\mathcal{H}\) vanishes somewhere, or if \(\mathcal{H}\) has a specific form: \(\mathcal{H}(x)=h_0(x)+\lambda\) where \(\lambda\in\mathbb{R}\), \(h_0\in C^1(\mathbb{S}^2)\), \(h_0\not\equiv 0\), and there exists \(v\in \mathbb{S}^2\) such that \(h_0(x)\langle x,v \rangle \ge 0\) for all \(x\in \mathbb{S}^2\). In particular, there are smooth positive functions on \(\mathbb{S}^2\) for which no closed \(\mathcal{H}\)-surface exists. A symmetry result for \(\mathcal{H}\)-surfaces with given boundary \(\Gamma\) is also proved using the Alexandrov reflection method. Suppose \(\Gamma\) is a simple closed curve lying in a plane \(\Pi\) and (i) \(\Gamma\) is symmetric with respect to reflection across a plane \(P\perp \Pi\), (ii) \(P\) separates \(\Gamma\) into two graphs over the line \(\Pi\cap P\), (iii) \(\mathcal{H}\) is invariant with respect to reflection in the vector plane parallel to \(P\). If \(M\) is a compact embedded \(\mathcal{H}\)-surface spanning \(\Gamma\) and \(M\) lies on one side of \(\Pi\), then \(M\) is symmetric with respect to \(P\). In view of this result, it is interesting to know under what conditions a compact embedded \(\mathcal{H}\)-surface \(M\) with \(\partial M\subset\Pi\) lies on one side of \(\Pi\). One such result is the following. Let \(\Omega\) be the domain in \(\Pi\) bounded by \(\Gamma\), and let \(\mathrm{ext}\Omega)=\Pi\backslash \overline\Omega\). If \(M\) is a compact embedded \(\mathcal{H}\)-surface spanning \(\Gamma\) and \(M\cap\mathrm{ext}(\Omega)=\emptyset\), then \(\mathrm{int}(M)\) lies in one of the two closed halfspaces determined by \(\Pi\). Further results of this kind, some with applications to translating solitons of the mean curvature flow, are also proved. In the final section the authors prove a height estimate for \(\mathcal{H}\)-graphs. Let \(\mathcal{H}>0\), let \(M\) be a compact \(\mathcal{H}\)-graph over a domain in \(\Pi\), and suppose \(\partial M\subset \Pi\). If \(h\) is the height of \(M\) with respect to \(\Pi\), then \(h\le \frac{1}{2\pi}\mathcal{H}_{\mathrm{max}} \mathrm{Area}(M)\).