On products of nonnegative linear operators and relations (Q663061)

Let \(\mathfrak H\) be a Hilbert space and \(B,C\) be bounded everywhere defined linear operators in \(\mathfrak H\), let \( S\) be a nonnegative linear relation in \(\mathfrak H\) (i.e., such a lineal in \(\mathfrak H \times \mathfrak H\) that \((f', f )\geq 0\) for all \(\{f, f'\}\in S\)). The pair of operators \(B\) and \(C\) is required to satisfy the conditions \(B(\hbox{dom\,} S) \subset \hbox{dom\,} S\), \(C^{*}S\subset S B\) and \(C(\hbox{dom\,} S) \subset \hbox{dom\,} S\), \(B^{*}S\subset S C\), where the products are in the sense of linear relations. Furthermore, assume that a certain linear space \(\mathfrak R_{0}\) which depends on \(S\) (namely, \(\mathfrak R_{0} = \{f' : (f' , f)= 0 \) for some \( \{f, f'\}\in S\} \subset \hbox{ran\,} S\)) is invariant with respect to \(B^{*}\) and \( C^{*} : B^{*}(\mathfrak R_{0} ) \subset \mathfrak R_{0}\), \(C^{*}(\mathfrak R_{0} ) \subset \mathfrak R_{0} \). Then the pair \(B, C\) induces a pair of associated bounded everywhere defined linear operators \(B_{S},C_{S}\) in a completion of \(\hbox{ran\,} S / \mathfrak R_{0}\). As a consequence of these constructions, a number of criteria are obtained for the existence of self-adjoint and nonnegative extensions in \(\mathfrak H\) of \(B^{*}S\) and \(C^{*}S\), generalizing to the case of linear relations some results for bounded operators presented in [\textit{S. Hassi} et al., Acta Math. Hung. 109, No.~ 1--2, 1--14 (2005; Zbl 1105.47003)] and, for unbounded operators, in [\textit{V. Prokaj} and \textit{Z. Sebestyén}, Acta Sci. Math. 62, 243--246 (1996; Zbl 0863.47010)], [\textit{Z. Sebestyén}, Acta Sci. Math. 66, 287--294 (2000; Zbl 0963.47016)] and [\textit{Z. Sebestyén} and \textit{J. Stochel}, Acta Sci. Math. 55, 149--154 (1991; Zbl 0897.47015)].