Universal inequalities for the eigenvalues of the biharmonic operator on submanifolds (Q635671)

Let \((M,g)\) be an \(n\)-dimensional Riemannian manifold, and let \(\Delta\) be the Laplace operator with respect to the metric \(g\). Let \(\Omega \subset M\) be a bounded domain. This paper concerns the eigenvalues \(\lambda\) of the biharmonic operator \(\Delta^2\) on \(\Omega\): \[ \begin{aligned} \Delta^2 u= \lambda u &\quad \text{in }\Omega,\\ u= \frac{\partial u}{\partial \nu} = 0 &\quad \text{on }\partial \Omega. \end{aligned} \] Above, \(\nu\) is the outward unit normal. This equation is used in physics to describe the clamped plate problem, in which \(\Omega\) is a vibrating plate with fixed boundary. The main result of this article is Theorem 2.4, which is a universal eigenvalue estimate proven under the assumption that \(M\) is isometrically immersed in \(m\)-dimensional Euclidean space, for some \(m\). A slightly modified estimate also holds for the eigenvalues of \(\Delta^2 + q\), where \(q\) is a smooth potential on \(\Omega\). These estimates generalize and unify both earlier estimates and more recent estimates [\textit{L. E. Payne, G. Pólya} and \textit{H. F. Weinberger}, J. Math. Phys., Mass. Inst. Techn. 35, 289--298 (1956; Zbl 0073.08203); \textit{Q. M. Cheng, T. Ichikawa} and \textit{S. Mametsuka}, J. Math. Soc. Japan 62, No. 2, 673--686 (2010; Zbl 1191.35192)]. An analogous estimate is proven for \(M\) which is isometrically immersed in either the sphere, the real projective space, the complex projective space or the quaternionic projective space. The estimate is also demonstrated to hold if there exists a harmonic map from \(M\) to the \(m\)-sphere with constant energy; examples of such manifolds \(M\) include the compact homogeneous spaces. Finally, when \(\Omega\) is a bounded domain in hyperbolic space, the estimate also holds. In general, the authors' methods can be applied whenever there exists a function \(h\) on the domain \(\Omega\) such that \(|\nabla h|\) is constant and \(|\Delta h|\) is bounded above by a constant. With minor changes, the methods in this paper could also be used to treat the clamped plate problem with weight: \[ \begin{aligned}\Delta^2 u = \lambda \rho u &\quad \text{in }\Omega,\\ u = \frac{\partial u}{\partial \nu} = 0 &\quad \text{on }\partial \Omega. \end{aligned} \] The key technical ingredient in the proof of these results is Theorem 2.3, an algebraic result in functional analysis, which the authors proved in [Manuscr. Math. 132, No. 1-2, 75--102 (2010; Zbl 1189.35206)].