Bifurcating extremal domains for the first eigenvalue of the Laplacian (Q655355)

The authors prove the existence of a smooth family of noncompact domains \(\Omega_s\subset\mathbb{R}^{n+1}\), bifurcating from the straight cylinder \(B^n\times \mathbb{R}\) for which the first eigenfunction of the Laplacian with vanishing Dirichlet data has also constant Neumann data on the boundary. The domains \(\Omega_s\) are rotationally symmetric and periodic with respect to the axis of the cylinder, and their radius is of the form \(1+s\cos\left( \frac{2\pi}{T_s}t\right)+O (s^2)\). Here \(T_s=T_0+O (s)\) and \(T_0\) is positive and depends on \(n\). This result provides a remarkable counterexample to a conjecture in [\textit{H. Berestycki, L. A. Caffarelli} and \textit{L. Nirenberg}, Commun. Pure Appl. Math. 50, No. 11, 1089--1111 (1997; Zbl 0906.35035)].