Eigenfunctions with double exponential rate of localization

Abstract

We construct a real-valued solution to the eigenvalue problem $-\text{div}(A\nabla u)=\lambda u$, $\lambda>0,$ in the cylinder $\mathbb{T}^2\times \mathbb{R}$ with a real, uniformly elliptic, and uniformly $C^1$ matrix $A$ such that $|u(x,y,t)|\leq C e^{-c e^{c|t|}}$ for some $c,C>0$. We also construct a complex-valued solution to the heat equation $u_t=\Delta u + B \nabla u$ in a half-cylinder with continuous and uniformly bounded $B$, which also decays with double exponential speed. Related classical ideas, used in the construction of counterexamples to the unique continuation by Plis and Miller, are reviewed.