Existence and uniqueness for \(p\)-area minimizers in the Heisenberg group (Q863412)

The authors investigate the \(p\)-area (i.e. the notion of area in a pseudo-Hermitian geometry) and the corresponding \(p\)-minimizers. The existence of \(p\)-minimizers is proved and the uniqueness is investigated. Since the problem is reduced to solving a degenerate elliptic equation, the effect of the singular set is relevant, and a careful study is required. A notion of weak solution is defined, and the relations between weak solutions and minimizers is investigated. An intriguing point is that also \(C^2\) solutions of the corresponding PDE may not be a minimizer.