Positive solutions of Yamabe-type equations with general potentials

Abstract

Let $(M^n,g)$ be a smooth closed connected Riemannian manifold of dimension $n\ge3$, and let $ψ\in C^\infty(M,\mathbb R)$. We prove that the equation $$ -\frac{4(n-1)}{n-2}Δ_g u+ψu=u^{\frac{n+2}{n-2}} $$ has a smooth positive solution if and only if its linear part has positive first eigenvalue. In dimensions $n\ge6$, the proof combines an energy estimate under exact local mass constraints with an intersection argument for finite cycles of atomic measures; dimensions $3\le n\le5$ follow from the theorem of Bahri and Brezis.