Eigenvalues and eigenfunctions of the non-local dispersal with Neumann-type boundary condition and symmetric kernel

Abstract

In this paper, we investigate the eigenvalue problem for a non-local dispersal operator defined on a bounded spatial domain with Neumann-type boundary conditions. Unlike the classical Laplacian, the non-local operator lacks compactness, which gives rise to an essential (continuous) spectrum and severely complicates the study of its discrete eigenvalues. The main contribution of this work is the rigorous variational construction of a finite or infinite sequence of non-trivial eigenfunctions corresponding to isolated eigenvalues located strictly above the continuous spectrum. Since the existence of these eigenvalues is not generally guaranteed due to the potential collapse of the spectral gap, we establish explicit sufficient geometric conditions linking the domain's size and geometry with the variance of the dispersal kernel that assure the emergence of the principal eigenvalue. Subsequent eigenpairs are constructed inductively via finite-dimensional Galerkin approximations. Utilizing a decomposition of the operator into compact and multiplicative part, we prove the strong convergence of the minimizing sequences.