A note on plurisubharmonic defining functions in \({\mathbb{C}^{n}}\) (Q957870)

Let \(\varOmega\subset\subset\mathbb C^n\) be a smoothly bounded domain that admits a \(\mathcal C^\infty\)-smooth defining function \(\rho\) such that \[ H_\rho(\xi,\xi)(z):=\sum_{j,k=1}^n\frac{\partial^2\rho}{\partial z_j\partial\overline z_k}(z)\xi_j\overline\xi_k\geq0,\quad z\in\partial\varOmega,\;\xi\in\mathbb C^n. \] The authors prove that then for every \(\varepsilon>0\) there exist a neighborhood \(U\) of \(\partial\varOmega\) and smooth defining functions \(r_1, r_2\) such that \[ H_{r_j}(\xi,\xi)(q_j)\geq-\varepsilon\Big(|r_j(q_j)|\cdot|\xi|^2+\frac1{|r_j(q_j)|}\cdot|\langle\partial r_j(q_j),\xi\rangle|^2\Big) \] for \(q_1\in\varOmega\cap U\), \(q_2\in U\setminus\overline\varOmega\), \(\xi\in\mathbb C^n\). Consequently: (i) for every \(\eta\in(0,1)\) there exists a smooth defining function \(\widetilde r_1\) such that \(-(-\widetilde r_1)^\eta\) is strictly plurisubharmonic on \(\varOmega\), (ii) for every \(\eta>1\) there exist a smooth defining function \(\widetilde r_2\) and a neighborhood \(U\) of \(\overline\varOmega\) such that \(\widetilde r_2^\eta\) is strictly plurisubharmonic on \(U\setminus\overline\varOmega\).