Laplacian eigenvalues functionals and metric deformations on compact manifolds

In this paper, we investigate critical points of the Laplacian's eigenvalues considered as functionals on the space of Riemmannian metrics or a conformal class of metrics on a compact manifold. We obtain necessary and sufficient conditions for a metric to be a critical point of such a functional. We derive specific consequences concerning possible locally maximizing metrics. We also characterize critical metrics of the ratio of two consecutive eigenvalues

Isoperimetric inequalities for the eigenvalues of natural Schr\"odinger operators on surfaces

This paper deals with eigenvalue optimization problems for a family of natural Schr\"odinger operators arising in some geometrical or physical contexts. These operators, whose potentials are quadratic in curvature, are considered on closed surfaces immersed in space forms and we look for geometries that maximize the eigenvalues. We show that under suitable assumptions on the potential, the first and the second eigenvalues are maximized by (round) spheres.Comment: Indiana University Math. Journa

Extremal spectral properties of Otsuki tori

Otsuki tori form a countable family of immersed minimal two-dimensional tori in the unitary three-dimensional sphere. According to El Soufi-Ilias theorem, the metrics on the Otsuki tori are extremal for some unknown eigenvalues of the Laplace-Beltrami operator. Despite the fact that the Otsuki tori are defined in quite an implicit way, we find explicitly the numbers of the corresponding extremal eigenvalues. In particular we provide an extremal metric for the third eigenvalue of the torus.Comment: 14 pages, 1 figure. v.2: minor corrections v.3: references are updated. arXiv admin note: text overlap with arXiv:1009.028

Domain deformations and eigenvalues of the Dirichlet Laplacian in a Riemannian manifold

For any bounded regular domain $\Omega$ of a real analytic Riemannian manifold $M$, we denote by $\lambda_{k}(\Omega)$ the $k$-th eigenvalue of the Dirichlet Laplacian of $\Omega$. In this paper, we consider $\lambda_k$ and as a functional upon the set of domains of fixed volume in $M$. We introduce and investigate a natural notion of critical domain for this functional. In particular, we obtain necessary and sufficient conditions for a domain to be critical, locally minimizing or locally maximizing for $\lambda_k$. These results rely on Hadamard type variational formulae that we establish in this general setting.Comment: To appear in Illinois J. Mat

Extremal first Dirichlet eigenvalue of doubly connected plane domains and dihedral symmetry

We deal with the following eigenvalue optimization problem: Given a bounded domain $D\subset \R^2$, how to place an obstacle $B$ of fixed shape within $D$ so as to maximize or minimize the fundamental eigenvalue $\lambda_1$ of the Dirichlet Laplacian on $D\setminus B$. This means that we want to extremize the function $\rho\mapsto \lambda_1(D\setminus \rho (B))$, where $\rho$ runs over the set of rigid motions such that $\rho (B)\subset D$. We answer this problem in the case where both $D$ and $B$ are invariant under the action of a dihedral group $\mathbb{D}_n$, $n\ge2$, and where the distance from the origin to the boundary is monotonous as a function of the argument between two axes of symmetry. The extremal configurations correspond to the cases where the axes of symmetry of $B$ coincide with those of $D$.Comment: To appear in SIAM Journal on Mathematical Analysi

On the placement of an obstacle so as to optimize the Dirichlet heat trace

We prove that among all doubly connected domains of $\R^n$ bounded by two spheres of given radii, $Z(t)$, the trace of the heat kernel with Dirichlet boundary conditions, achieves its minimum when the spheres are concentric (i.e., for the spherical shell). The supremum is attained when the interior sphere is in contact with the outer sphere.This is shown to be a special case of a more general theorem characterizing the optimal placement of a spherical obstacle inside a convex domain so as to maximize or minimize the trace of the Dirichlet heat kernel. In this case the minimizing position of the center of the obstacle belongs to the "heart" of the domain, while the maximizing situation occurs either in the interior of the heart or at a point where the obstacle is in contact with the outer boundary. Similar statements hold for the optimal positions of the obstaclefor any spectral property that can be obtained as a positivity-preserving or positivity-reversing transform of $Z(t)$,including the spectral zeta function and, through it, the regularized determinant.Comment: in SIAM Journal on Mathematical Analysis, Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics, 201

Inequalities and bounds for the eigenvalues of the sub-Laplacian on a strictly pseudoconvex CR manifold

We establish inequalities for the eigenvalues of the sub-Laplace operator associated with a pseudo-Hermitian structure on a strictly pseudoconvex CR manifold. Our inequalities extend those obtained by Niu and Zhang \cite{NiuZhang} for the Dirichlet eigenvalues of the sub-Laplacian on a bounded domain in the Heisenberg group and are in the spirit of the well known Payne-P\'{o}lya-Weinberger and Yang universal inequalities.Comment: To appear in Calculus of variations and Partial Differential Equation