Two-interval Sturm--Liouville operators in modified Hilbert spaces (Q864701)

In the functional analytic reinterpretation of classical Sturm--Liouville theory [see \textit{E.\,A.\thinspace Codding\-ton} and \textit{N.\,Levinson}, ``Theory of ordinary differential equations'' (McGraw--Hill, New York etc.) (1955; Zbl 0064.33002); \textit{N.\,Dunford} and \textit{J.\,T.\thinspace Schwartz}, ``Linear operators. Part II: spectral theory'' (Interscience, New York and London) (1963; Zbl 0128.34803) (\({}^2\)1988; Zbl 0635.47002)], a symmetric ordinary differential operator is given in a finite or infinite interval \(I = (a, b)\); the objective is the characterization of boundary conditions that make the operator selfadjoint in the space \(L^2(I, w)\) (\(w\) a weight function). The present paper deals with the generalization where there are two intervals \(I_1 = (a, b)\), \(I_2 = (c, d)\), and symmetric operators of the form \[ M_1 y = - (p_1 y')' + q_1 y , \quad M_2 y = - (p_2 y')' + q_2 y \] are given in each interval; the intervals may be identical, disjoint, or they may overlap or about. As in the case of one interval, the authors study the characterization of boundary conditions that make the symmetric operator \(M_1 \oplus M_2\) selfadjoint in the space \(L^2(I_1, w_1) \oplus L^2(I_2, w_2).\) Characterizations depend on a \textit{coupling matrix} \(K\) and generality in assumptions on \(K\) is gained by modifying the scalar product of \(L^2(I_1, w_1) \oplus L^2(I_2, w_2).\)