On \(W\)-solutions of boundary value problems of degenerate elliptic operators (Q913104)

Let \(L\) be a linear elliptic operator of the type \[ Lu=\sum^{m}_{i=1}\partial /\partial x_ i(\sum^{m}_{j=1}a_{ij}(\partial u/\partial x_ j))+\sum^{m}_{i=1}b_ i(\partial u/\partial x_ i)+cu. \] The authors consider degenerate operators \(L\); that is, \(\sum^{m}_{i,j=1}a_{ij}(x)\xi_ i\xi_ j\geq\nu(x)|\xi|^ 2\) for a nonnegative function \(\nu\) such that \(\nu\) and 1/\(\nu\) are both locally integrable. Under appropriate hypothesis for the coefficients of \(L\) and for certain weighted Sobolev spaces \(W\) associated to \(\nu\), the authors establish existence and uniqueness in \(W\) for the problem \((Lu,v)=(f,v)\), for all \(v\in W\). In this paper the case in which \(W\) is contained in \(L^{\infty}\) is studied in detail.