We obtain sharp upper bounds for the first two nonzero Steklov eigenvalues among bounded domains in Euclidean spaces of dimension $d \geq 7$ under a natural normalization involving volume and boundary measure. These bounds are derived from a characterization of optimal domains and weights for the first two nonzero weighted Neumann eigenvalues. In dimensions $3 \leq d \leq 6$, we obtain strict upper bounds.
We further establish strict upper bounds for all higher Steklov eigenvalues on planar simply connected domains with continuous boundary, extending previous results which, beyond the second nonzero eigenvalue, were known only for smooth planar domains.
The second eigenvalue of the Robin Laplacian is shown to be maximal for the ball among domains of fixed volume, for negative values of the Robin parameter $α$ in the regime connecting the first nontrivial Neumann and Steklov eigenvalues, and even somewhat beyond the Steklov regime. The result is close to optimal, since the ball is not maximal when $α$ is sufficiently large negative, and the problem admits no maximiser when $α$ is positive.
We give an overview of results on shape optimization for low eigenvalues of the Laplacian on bounded planar domains with Neumann and Steklov boundary conditions. These results share a common feature: they are proved using methods of complex analysis. In particular, we present modernized proofs of the classical inequalities due to Szego and Weinstock for the first nonzero Neumann and Steklov eigenvalues. We also extend the inequality for the second nonzero Neumann eigenvalue, obtained recently by Nadirashvili and the authors, to non-homogeneous membranes with log-subharmonic densities. In the h…
We study a new link between the Steklov and Neumann eigenvalues of domains in Euclidean space. This is obtained through an homogenisation limit of the Steklov problem on a periodically perforated domain, converging to a family of eigenvalue problems with dynamical boundary conditions. For this problem, the spectral parameter appears both in the interior of the domain and on its boundary. This intermediary problem interpolates between Steklov and Neumann eigenvalues of the domain. As a corollary, we recover some isoperimetric type bounds for Neumann eigenvalues from known isoperimetric bounds f…
We discuss isoperimetric inequalities for the magnetic Laplacian on bounded domains of $\mathbb R^2$ endowed with an Aharonov-Bohm potential. When the flux of the potential around the pole is not an integer, the lowest eigenvalue for the Neumann and the Steklov problems is positive. We establish isoperimetric inequalitites for the lowest eigenvalue in the spirit of the classical inequalities of Szegö-Weinberger, Brock and Weinstock, the model domain being a disk with the pole at its center. We consider more generally domains in the plane endowed with a rotationally invariant metric, which incl…
We extend some classical inequalities between the Dirichlet and Neumann eigenvalues of the Laplacian to the context of mixed Steklov--Dirichlet and Steklov--Neumann eigenvalue problems. The latter one is also known as the sloshing problem, and has been actively studied for more than a century due to its importance in hydrodynamics. The main results of the paper are applied to obtain certain geometric information about nodal sets of sloshing eigenfunctions. The key ideas of the proofs include domain monotonicity for eigenvalues of mixed Steklov problems, as well as an adaptation of Filonov's me…
Let $(Ω,g)$ be a compact, real-analytic Riemannian manifold with real-analytic boundary $\partial Ω.$ The harmonic extensions of the boundary Dirchlet-to-Neumann eigenfunctions are called Steklov eigenfunctions. We show that the Steklov eigenfuntions decay exponentially into the interior in terms of the Dirichlet-to-Neumann eigenvalues and give a sharp rate of decay to first order at the boundary. The proof uses the Poisson representation for the Steklov eigenfunctions combined with sharp $h$-microlocal concentration estimates for the boundary Dirichlet-to-Neumann eigenfunctions near the cosph…
We consider the Steklov eigenvalues of the Laplace operator as limiting Neumann eigenvalues in a problem of boundary mass concentration. We discuss the asymptotic behavior of the Neumann eigenvalues in a ball and we deduce that the Steklov eigenvalues minimize the Neumann eigenvalues. Moreover, we study the dependence of the eigenvalues of the Steklov problem upon perturbation of the mass density and show that the Steklov eigenvalues violates a maximum principle in spectral optimization problems.
The second eigenvalue of the Robin Laplacian is shown to be maximal for the disk among simply-connected planar domains of fixed area when the Robin parameter is scaled by perimeter in the form $α/L(Ω)$, and $α$ lies between $-2π$ and $2π$. Corollaries include Szegő's sharp upper bound on the second eigenvalue of the Neumann Laplacian under area normalization, and Weinstock's inequality for the first nonzero Steklov eigenvalue for simply-connected domains of given perimeter. The first Robin eigenvalue is maximal, under the same conditions, for the degenerate rectangle. When area normalization o…
We consider the Steklov eigenvalues of the Laplace operator as limiting Neumann eigenvalues in a problem of mass concentration at the boundary of a ball. We discuss the asymptotic behavior of the Neumann eigenvalues and find explicit formulas for their derivatives at the limiting problem. We deduce that the Neumann eigenvalues have a monotone behavior in the limit and that Steklov eigenvalues locally minimize the Neumann eigenvalues.
We obtain a complete asymptotic expansion for the eigenvalues of the Dirichlet-to-Neumann maps associated with Schrödinger operators on compact Riemannian surfaces with boundary. For the zero potential, we recover the well-known spectral asymptotics for the Steklov problem. For nonzero potentials, we obtain new geometric invariants determined by the spectrum of what we call the parametric Steklov problem. In particular, for constant potentials parametric Steklov problem, the total geodesic curvature on each connected component of the boundary is a spectral invariant. Under the constant curvatu…
The exterior Steklov problem for Euclidean domains
The University of Alabama（阿拉巴马大学）；Université Laval（拉瓦尔大学）；École Polytechnique（巴黎综合理工学院）；Institut Polytechnique de Paris（巴黎理工学院）；University of Reading（雷丁大学）；Université de Montréal（蒙特利尔大学）
We discuss a Steklov-type problem for Maxwell's equations which is related to an interior Calderón operator and an appropriate Dirichlet-to-Neumann type map. The corresponding Neumann-to-Dirichlet map turns out to be compact and this provides a Fourier basis of Steklov eigenfunctions for the associated energy spaces. With an approach similar to that developed by Auchmuty for the Laplace operator, we provide natural spectral representations for the appropriate trace spaces, for the Calderón operator itself and for the solutions of the corresponding boundary value problems subject to electric or…
The Steklov problem is an eigenvalue problem with the spectral parameter in the boundary conditions, which has various applications. Its spectrum coincides with that of the Dirichlet-to-Neumann operator. Over the past years, there has been a growing interest in the Steklov problem from the viewpoint of spectral geometry. While this problem shares some common properties with its more familiar Dirichlet and Neumann cousins, its eigenvalues and eigenfunctions have a number of distinctive geometric features, which makes the subject especially appealing. In this survey we discuss some recent advanc…
We consider Dirichlet-to-Neumann operators associated to $Δ+q$ on a Lipschitz domain in a smooth manifold, where $q$ is an $L^{\infty}$ potential. We prove a Courant-type bound for the nodal count of the extensions $u_k$ of the $k$th Dirichlet-to-Neumann eigenfunctions $ϕ_k$ to the interior satisfying $(Δ+q)u_k=0$. The classical Courant nodal domain theorem is known to hold for Steklov eigenfunctions, which are the harmonic extension of the Dirichlet-to-Neumann eigenfunctions associated to $Δ$. Our result extends it to a larger family of Dirichlet-to-Neumann operators. Our proof makes use of t…
We study the eigenvalues of the Dirichlet-to-Neumann operator on a finite subgraph of the integer lattice Zn. We estimate the first n+1 eigenvalues using the number of vertices of the subgraph. As a corollary, we prove that the first non-trivial eigenvalue of the Dirichlet-to-Neumann operator tends to zero as the number of vertices of the subgraph tends to infinity.
We introduce the biharmonic Steklov problem on differential forms by considering suitable boundary conditions. We characterize its smallest eigenvalue and prove elementary properties of the spectrum. We obtain various estimates for the first eigenvalue, some of which involve eigenvalues of other problems such as the Dirichlet, Neumann, Robin and Steklov ones. Independently, new inequalities relating the eigenvalues of the latter problems are proved.
We obtain upper and lower bounds for Steklov eigenvalues of submanifolds with prescribed boundary in Euclidean space. A very general upper bound is proved, which depends only on the geometry of the fixed boundary and on the measure of the interior. Sharp lower bounds are given for hypersurfaces of revolution with connected boundary: we prove that each eigenvalue is uniquely minimized by the ball. We also observe that each surface of revolution with connected boundary is isospectral to the disk.
We obtain upper bounds for the Steklov eigenvalues $σ_k(M)$ of a smooth, compact, connected, $n$-dimensional submanifold $M$ of Euclidean space with boundary $Σ$ that involve the intersection indices of $M$ and of $Σ$. One of our main results is an explicit upper bound in terms of the intersection index of $Σ$, the volume of $Σ$ and the volume of $M$ as well as dimensional constants. By also taking the injectivity radius of $Σ$ into account, we obtain an upper bound that has the optimal exponent of $k$ with respect to the asymptotics of the Steklov eigenvalues as $k \to \infty$.
We consider three different questions related to the Steklov and mixed Steklov problems on surfaces. These questions are connected by the techniques that we use to study them, which exploit symmetry in various ways even though the surfaces we study do not necessarily have inherent symmetry. In the spirit of the celebrated Hersch-Payne-Schiffer and Weinstock inequalities for Steklov eigenvalues, we obtain a sharp isoperimetric inequality for the mixed Steklov eigenvalues considering the interplay between the eigenvalues of the mixed Steklov-Neumann and Steklov-Dirichlet eigenvalues. In 1980, Ba…
Given a smooth compact hypersurface $M$ with boundary $Σ=\partial M$, we prove the existence of a sequence $M_j$ of hypersurfaces with the same boundary as $M$, such that each Steklov eigenvalue $σ_k(M_j)$ tends to zero as $j$ tends to infinity. The hypersurfaces $M_j$ are obtained from $M$ by a local perturbation near a point of its boundary. Their volumes and diameters are arbitrarily close to those of $M$, while the principal curvatures of the boundary remain unchanged.
We study the heat trace asymptotics associated with the Steklov eigenvalue problem on a Riemannian manifold with boundary. In particular, we describe the structure of the Steklov heat invariants and compute the first few of them explicitly in terms of the scalar and mean curvatures. This is done by applying the Seeley calculus to the Dirichlet-to-Neumann operator, whose spectrum coincides with the Steklov eigenvalues. As an application, it is proved that a three--dimensional ball is uniquely defined by its Steklov spectrum among all Euclidean domains with smooth connected boundary.
We study bounds on the Riesz means of the mixed Steklov-Neumann and Steklov-Dirichlet eigenvalue problem on a bounded domain $Ω$ in $\mathbb{R}^n$. The Steklov-Neumann eigenvalue problem is also called the sloshing problem. We obtain two-term asymptotically sharp lower bounds on the Riesz means of the sloshing problem and also provide an asymptotically sharp upper bound for the Riesz means of mixed Steklov-Dirichlet problem. The proof of our results for the sloshing problem uses the average variational principle and monotonicity of sloshing eigenvalues. In the case of Steklov-Dirichlet eigenva…
We obtain precise asymptotics for the Steklov eigenvalues on a compact Riemannian surface with boundary. It is shown that the number of connected components of the boundary, as well as their lengths, are invariants of the Steklov spectrum. The proofs are based on pseudodifferential techniques for the Dirichlet-to-Neumann operator and on a number-theoretic argument.
In this paper we study spectral properties of Dirichlet-to-Neumann map on differential forms obtained by a slight modification of the definition due to Belishev and Sharafutdinov. The resulting operator $Λ$ is shown to be self-adjoint on the subspace of coclosed forms and to have purely discrete spectrum there.We investigate properies of eigenvalues of $Λ$ and prove a Hersch-Payne-Schiffer type inequality relating products of those eigenvalues to eigenvalues of Hodge Laplacian on the boundary. Moreover, non-trivial eigenvalues of $Λ$ are always at least as large as eigenvalues of Dirichlet-to-…
We consider an eigenvalue problem for the biharmonic operator with Steklov-type boundary conditions. We obtain it as a limiting Neumann problem for the biharmonic operator in a process of mass concentration at the boundary. We study the dependence of the spectrum upon the domain. We show analyticity of the symmetric functions of the eigenvalues under isovolumetric perturbations and prove that balls are critical points for such functions under measure constraint. Moreover, we show that the ball is a maximizer for the first positive eigenvalue among those domains with a prescribed fixed measure.
This paper is devoted to investigate the heat trace asymptotic expansion corresponding to the magnetic Steklov eigenvalue problem on Riemannian manifolds with boundary. We establish an effective procedure, by which we can calculate all the coefficients $a_0$, $a_1$, $\dots$, $a_{n-1}$ of the heat trace asymptotic expansion. In particular, we explicitly give the expressions for the first four coefficients. These coefficients are spectral invariants which provide precise information concerning the volume and curvatures of the boundary of the manifold and some physical quantities by the magnetic …
We develop a computational method for extremal Steklov eigenvalue problems and apply it to study the problem of maximizing the $p$-th Steklov eigenvalue as a function of the domain with a volume constraint. In contrast to the optimal domains for several other extremal Dirichlet- and Neumann-Laplacian eigenvalue problems, computational results suggest that the optimal domains for this problem are very structured. We reach the conjecture that the domain maximizing the $p$-th Steklov eigenvalue is unique (up to dilations and rigid transformations), has p-fold symmetry, and an axis of symmetry. Th…
It was conjectured by Escobar [J. Funct. Anal. 165 (1999), 101--116] that for an $n$-dimensional ($n\geq 3$) smooth compact Riemannian manifold with boundary, which has nonnegative Ricci curvature and boundary principal curvatures bounded below by $c>0$, the first nonzero Steklov eigenvalue is greater than or equal to $c$ with equality holding only on isometrically Euclidean balls with radius $1/c$. In this paper, we confirm this conjecture in the case of nonnegative sectional curvature. The proof is based on a combination of Qiu--Xia's weighted Reilly-type formula with a special choice of the…
Let $(M^n,g)$ be a complete simply connected $n$-dimensional Riemannian manifold with curvature bounds $\operatorname{Sect}_g\leq κ$ for $κ\leq 0$ and $\operatorname{Ric}_g\geq(n-1)Kg$ for $K\leq 0$. We prove that for any bounded domain $Ω\subset M^n$ with diameter $d$ and Lipschitz boundary, if $Ω^*$ is a geodesic ball in the simply connected space form with constant sectional curvature $κ$ enclosing the same volume as $Ω$, then $σ_1(Ω) \leq C σ_1(Ω^*)$, where $σ_1(Ω)$ and $ σ_1(Ω^*)$ denote the first nonzero Steklov eigenvalues of $Ω$ and $Ω^*$ respectively, and $C=C(n,κ, K, d)$ is an explic…
The University of Texas at Austin（德克萨斯大学奥斯汀分校）；China University of Mining and Technology-Beijing（中国矿业大学（北京））；University of Science and Technology of China（中国科学技术大学）
We associate a sequence of variational eigenvalues to any Radon measure on a compact Riemannian manifold. For particular choices of measures, we recover the Laplace, Steklov and other classical eigenvalue problems. In the first part of the paper we study the properties variational eigenvalues and establish a general continuity result, which shows for a sequence of measures converging in the dual of an appropriate Sobolev space, that the associated eigenvalues converge as well. The second part of the paper is devoted to various applications to shape optimization. The main theme is studying shar…
The inverse problem of recovering a smooth simply connected multisheet planar domain from its Steklov spectrum is equivalent to the problem of determination, up to a gauge transform, of a smooth positive function $a$ on the unit circle from the spectrum of the operator $aΛ$, where $Λ$ is the Dirichlet-to-Neumann operator of the unit disk. Zeta-invariants are defined by $Z_m(a)={\rm Tr}[(aΛ)^{2m}-(aD)^{2m}]$ for every smooth function $a$. In the case of a positive $a$, zeta-invariants are determined by the Steklov spectrum. We obtain some estimate from below for $Z_m(a)$ in the case of a real f…
Let N be a complete Riemannian manifold of dimension n+1 whose Riemannian metric g is conformally equivalent to a metric with non-negative Ricci curvature. The normalized Steklov eigenvalues of a bounded domain in N are bounded above in terms of the isoperimetric ratio of the domain. Consequently, the normalized Steklov eigenvalues of a bounded domain in Euclidean space, hyperbolic space or a standard hemisphere are uniformly bounded above. On a compact surface with boundary, the normalized Steklov eigenvalues are uniformly bounded above in terms of the genus. We also obtain a relationship bet…
In recent years, eigenvalue optimization problems have received a lot of attention, in particular, due to their connection with the theory of minimal surfaces. In the present paper we prove that on any orientable surface there exists a smooth metric maximizing the first normalized Steklov eigenvalue. For surfaces of genus zero, this has been earlier proved by A. Fraser and R. Schoen. Our approach builds upon their ideas and further developments due to R. Petrides. As a corollary, we show that there exist free boundary branched minimal immersions of an arbitrary compact orientable surface with …
Let $M^n=[0,R)\times \mathbb{S}^{n-1}$ be an $n$-dimensional ($n\geq 2$) smooth Riemannian manifold equipped with the warped product metric $g=dr^2+h^2(r)g_{\mathbb{S}^{n-1}}$ and diffeomorphic to a Euclidean ball. Assume that $M$ has strictly convex boundary. First, for the classical Steklov eigenvalue problem, we obtain an optimal lower (upper, respectively) bound for its spectrum in terms of $h'(R)/h(R)$ when $Ric_g\geq 0$ ($\leq 0$, respectively). Second, for two fourth-order Steklov eigenvalue problems studied by Kuttler and Sigillito in 1968, we derive a lower bound for their spectra in …
This paper studies eigenvalues of some Steklov problems. Among other things, we show the following sharp estimtes. Let $Ω$ be a bounded smooth domain in an $n(\geq 2)$-dimensional Hadamard manifold an let $0=λ_0 < λ_1\leq λ_2\leq ... $ denote the eigenvalues of the Steklov problem: $Δu=0$ in $Ω$ and $(\partial u)/(\partial ν)=λu$ on $\partial Ω$. Then $\sum_{i=1}^{n} λ^{-1}_i \geq (n^2|Ω|)/(|\partialΩ|) $ with equality holding if and only if $Ω$ is isometric to an $n$-dimensional Euclidean ball. Let $M$ be an $n(\geq 2)$-dimensional compact connected Riemannian manifold with boundary and non-n…
We consider the zeta function $ζ_Ω$ for the Dirichlet-to-Neumann operator of a simply connected planar domain $Ω$ bounded by a smooth closed curve of perimeter $2π$. We prove that $ζ_Ω''(0)\ge ζ_{\mathbb{D}}''(0)$ with equality if and only if $Ω$ is a disk where $\mathbb{D}$ denotes the closed unit disk. We also provide an elementary proof that for a fixed real $s$ satisfying $s\le-1$ the estimate $ζ_Ω''(s)\ge ζ_{\mathbb{D}}''(s)$ holds with equality if and only if $Ω$ is a disk. We then bring examples of domains $Ω$ close to the unit disk where this estimate fails to be extended to the interv…
