On the Morawetz--Keel-Smith-Sogge inequality for the wave equation on a curved background (Q863788)

Introduction: In their paper [J. Anal. Math. 87, 265--279 (2002; Zbl 1031.35107)], \textit{M. Keel} et al. establish an improved standard energy inequality for the wave equation, where the energy right-hand side controls the energy and also \[ [\log(1+t)]^{-1/2} \Biggl(\int \int^t_0 (1+ r)^{-1}|\partial u|^2\,dx\,dt'\Biggr)^{1/2}. \] They obtained this inequality in space dimension \(n=3\) using the strong Huygens principle and clever cut-offs. In particular, the inequality shows that, for energy data, the local energy of the solution in, say, \(r\leq 1\), is almost integrable in \(t\) (and not just bounded as it is close to the light cone). Similar ideas where introduced long ago by \textit{C. S. Morawetz} [Proc. R. Soc. Lond., Ser. A 306, 291--296 (1968; Zbl 0157.41502)] and have been also developed by \textit{K. Mochizuki} [Scattering theory for wave equations, Kinokuniya, Tokyo (1984; Zbl 1390.35003)] and \textit{T. Matsuyama} [Trans. Am. Math. Soc. 355, No. 3, 865--899 (2003; Zbl 1116.35337)]. This improved energy inequality, which we call Morawetz/KSS inequality from the names of the mathematicians who found it, has been used by them to solve semilinear and quasilinear exterior boundary value problems. It has been also extended to higher dimensions by \textit{J. L. Metcalfe} [Houston J. Math. 30, No. 1, 259--281 (2004; Zbl 1073.35172)] and used in the context of quasilinear wave equations of systems by Metcalfe [loc. cit.] and \textit{K. Hidano} and \textit{K. Yokoyama} [Funkc. Ekvacioj, Ser. Int. 48, No. 1, 1--34 (2005; Zbl 1185.35134)]. By the author [Math. Ann. 329, No. 4, 707--722 (2004; Zbl 1065.35075)] (developing an idea from the author [Invent. Math. 145, No. 3, 597--618 (2001; Zbl 1112.35341)]), we also proved an improved standard energy inequality, in which the ``good derivatives'' \(T_i= \partial_i+ (x_i/r)\partial_t\) are shown to behave better close to the light cone. We display this inequality in two slightly different setting: a pure coordinate approach, and a more geometric approach in the spirit by \textit{D. Christodoulou} and \textit{S. Klainerman} [The global nonlinear stability of the Minkowski space. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press (1993; Zbl 0827.53055)], \textit{S. Klainerman} and \textit{F. Nicolò} [The evolution problem in general relativity. Boston, MA: Birkhäuser (2003; Zbl 1010.83004)]. This inequality plays also a crucial role in the work of \textit{H. Lindblad} and \textit{I. Rodnianski} [Commun. Math. Phys. 256, No. 1, 43--110 (2005; Zbl 1081.83003)], Preprint (2004; \url{arxiv:math/0312479})], and by the author [Bull. Soc. Math. Fr. 133, No. 3, 419--458 (2005; Zbl 1096.35013); Autour de l'analyse microlocale. Paris: Société Mathématique de France. 1--91 (2003; Zbl 1010.83004)]. Thus it seemed interesting to us to try to obtain both inequalities on a curved background; since many nad terms of tone inequality have to be controlled by good terms of the other, both inequalities have to be proved together. The remarkable fact here is that the conditions on the metric to obtain one or the other inequality are essentially the same, thus allowing relatively light assumptions. In this paper, using a multiplier technique in the spirit of the original Morawetz paper [\textit{J. L. Metcalfe}, Houston J. Math. 30, No. 1, 259--281 (2004; Zbl 1073.35172)] and of [\textit{T. Matsuyama}, Trans. Am. Math. Soc. 355, No. 3, 865--899 (2003; Zbl 1116.35337)], [K. Mochizuki, loc. cit.], we present two versions (coordinate and geometric) of this inequality. It turns out that very little decay of the perturbed metric is required close to the light cone or to the \(t\)-axis, while we still have to require rather strong decay for \(r\gg t\) or in-between the \(t\)-axis and th light cone. We hope that this variable coefficients extension will turn out to be useful for nonlinear problems as well.