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Enrico Valdinoci

Publications and source records attributed to Enrico Valdinoci.

At least 199 records · Page 11Linked to original sources

Capillarity problems with nonlocal surface tension energies

We explore the possibility of modifying the classical Gauss free energy functional used in capillarity theory by considering surface tension energies of nonlocal type. The corresponding variational principles lead to new equilibrium conditions which are compared to the mean curvature equation and Young's law found in classical capillarity theory. As a special case of this family of problems we recover a nonlocal relative isoperimetric problem of geometric interest.

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On stable solutions of boundary reaction-diffusion equations and applications to nonlocal problems with Neumann data

We study reaction-diffusion equations in cylinders with possibly nonlinear diffusion and possibly nonlinear Neumann boundary conditions. We provide a geometric Poincaré-type inequality and classification results for stable solutions, and we apply them to the study of an associated nonlocal problem. We also establish a counterexample in the corresponding framework for the fractional Laplacian.

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Graph properties for nonlocal minimal surfaces

In this paper we show that a nonlocal minimal surface which is a graph outside a cylinder is in fact a graph in the whole of the space. As a consequence, in dimension~$3$, we show that the graph is smooth. The proofs rely on convolution techniques and appropriate integral estimates which show the pointwise validity of an Euler-Lagrange equation related to the nonlocal mean curvature.

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A new type of identification problems: optimizing the fractional order in a nonlocal evolution equation

In this paper, we consider a rather general linear evolution equation of fractional type, namely a diffusion type problem in which the diffusion operator is the $s$th power of a positive definite operator having a discrete spectrum in $\R^+$. We prove existence, uniqueness and differentiability properties with respect to the fractional parameter $s$. These results are then employed to derive existence as well as first-order necessary and second-order sufficient optimality conditions for a minimization problem, which is inspired by considerations in mathematical biology. In this problem, the fractional parameter $s$ serves as the "control parameter" that needs to be chosen in such a way as to minimize a given cost functional. This problem constitutes a new class of identification problems: while usually in identification problems the type of the differential operator is prescribed and one or several of its coefficient functions need to be identified, in the present case one has to determine the type of the differential operator itself. This problem exhibits the inherent analytical difficulty that with changing fractional parameter $s$ also the domain of definition, and thus the underlying function space, of the fractional operator changes.

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Bifurcation results for a fractional elliptic equation with critical exponent in R^n

In this paper we study some nonlinear elliptic equations in $\R^n$ obtained as a perturbation of the problem with the fractional critical Sobolev exponent, that is $$ (-Δ)^s u = ε\,h\,u^q + u^p \ {in}\R^n,$$ where $s\in(0,1)$, $n>4s$, $ε>0$ is a small parameter, $p=\frac{n+2s}{n-2s}$, $0<q<p$ and $h$ is a continuous and compactly supported function. To construct solutions to this equation, we use the Lyapunov-Schmidt reduction, that takes advantage of the variational structure of the problem. For this, the case $0<q<1$ is particularly difficult, due to the lack of regularity of the associated energy functional, and we need to introduce a new functional setting and develop an appropriate fractional elliptic regularity theory.

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Chaotic orbits for systems of nonlocal equations

We consider a system of nonlocal equations driven by a perturbed periodic potential. We construct multibump solutions that connect one integer point to another one in a prescribed way. In particular, heteroclinc, homoclinic and chaotic trajectories are constructed. This is the first attempt to consider a nonlocal version of this type of dynamical systems in a variational setting and the first result regarding symbolic dynamics in a fractional framework.

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Nonlocal phase transitions in homogeneous and periodic media

We discuss some results related to a phase transition model in which the potential energy induced by a double-well function is balanced by a fractional elastic energy. In particular, we present asymptotic results (such as $Γ$-convergence, energy bounds and density estimates for level sets), flatness and rigidity results, and the construction of planelike minimizers in periodic media. Finally, we consider a nonlocal equation with a multiwell potential, motivated by models arising in crystal dislocations, and we construct orbits exhibiting symbolic dynamics, inspired by some classical results by Paul Rabinowitz.

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Rigidity of critical points for a nonlocal Ohta-Kawasaki energy

We investigate the shape of critical points for a free energy consisting of a nonlocal perimeter plus a nonlocal repulsive term. In particular, we prove that a volume-constrained critical point is necessarily a ball if its volume is sufficiently small with respect to its isodiametric ratio, thus extending a result previously known only for global minimizers. We also show that, at least in one-dimension, there exist critical points with arbitrarily small volume and large isodiametric ratio. This example shows that a constraint on the diameter is, in general, necessary to establish the radial symmetry of the critical points.

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Is a nonlocal diffusion strategy convenient for biological populations in competition?

We study the convenience of a nonlocal dispersal strategy in a reaction-diffusion system with a fractional Laplacian operator. We show that there are circumstances - namely, a precise condition on the distribution of the resource - under which a nonlocal dispersal behavior is favored. In particular, we consider the linearization of a biological system that models the interaction of two biological species, one with local and one with nonlocal dispersal, that are competing for the same resource. We give a simple, concrete example of resources for which the equilibrium with only the local population becomes linearly unstable. In a sense, this example shows that nonlocal strategies can become successful even in an environment in which purely local strategies are dominant at the beginning, provided that the resource is sufficiently sparse. Indeed, the example considered presents a high variance of the distribution of the dispersal, thus suggesting that the shortage of resources and their unbalanced supply may be some of the basic ingredients that favor nonlocal strategies.

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Fractional elliptic problems with critical growth in the whole of $\R^n$

We study the following nonlinear and nonlocal elliptic equation in~$\R^n$ $$ (-Δ)^s u = ε\,h\,u^q + u^p \ {\mbox{ in }}\R^n, $$ where~$s\in(0,1)$, $n>2s$, $ε>0$ is a small parameter, $p=\frac{n+2s}{n-2s}$, $q\in(0,1)$, and~$h\in L^1(\R^n)\cap L^\infty(\R^n)$. The problem has a variational structure, and this allows us to find a positive solution by looking at critical points of a suitable energy functional. In particular, in this paper, we find a local minimum and a mountain pass solution of this functional. One of the crucial ingredient is a Concentration-Compactness principle. Some difficulties arise from the nonlocal structure of the problem and from the fact that we deal with an equation in the whole of~$\R^n$ (and this causes lack of compactness of some embeddings). We overcome these difficulties by looking at an equivalent extended problem.

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Boundary behavior of nonlocal minimal surfaces

We consider the behavior of the nonlocal minimal surfaces in the vicinity of the boundary. By a series of detailed examples, we show that nonlocal minimal surfaces may stick at the boundary of the domain, even when the domain is smooth and convex. This is a purely nonlocal phenomenon, and it is in sharp contrast with the boundary properties of the classical minimal surfaces. In particular, we show stickiness phenomena to half-balls when the datum outside the ball is a small half-ring and to the side of a two-dimensional box when the oscillation between the datum on the right and on the left is large enough. When the fractional parameter is small, the sticking effects may become more and more evident. Moreover, we show that lines in the plane are unstable at the boundary: namely, small compactly supported perturbations of lines cause the minimizers in a slab to stick at the boundary, by a quantity that is proportional to a power of the perturbation. In all the examples, we present concrete estimates on the stickiness phenomena. Also, we construct a family of compactly supported barriers which can have independent interest.

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Relaxation times for atom dislocations in crystals

We study the relaxation times for a parabolic differential equation whose solution represents the atom dislocation in a crystal. The equation that we consider comprises the classical Peierls-Nabarro model as a particular case, and it allows also long range interactions. It is known that the dislocation function of such a model has the tendency to concentrate at single points, which evolve in time according to the external stress and a singular, long range potential. Depending on the orientation of the dislocation function at these points, the potential may be either attractive or repulsive, hence collisions may occur in the latter case and, at the collision time, the dislocation function does not disappear. The goal of this paper is to provide accurate estimates on the relaxation times of the system after collision. More precisely, we take into account the case of two and three colliding points, and we show that, after a small transition time subsequent to the collision, the dislocation function relaxes exponentially fast to a steady state. We stress that the exponential decay is somehow exceptional in nonlocal problems (for instance, the spatial decay in this case is polynomial). The exponential time decay is due to the coupling (in a suitable space/time scale) between the evolution term and the potential induced by the periodicity of the crystal.

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A one-dimensional symmetry result for a class of nonlocal semilinear equations in the plane

We consider entire solutions to $\mathcal{L}u=f(u)$ in $\mathbb R^2$, where $\mathcal L$ is a nonlocal operator with translation invariant, even and compactly supported kernel $K$. Under different assumptions on the operator $\mathcal L$, we show that monotone solutions are necessarily one-dimensional. The proof is based on a Liouville type approach. A variational characterization of the stability notion is also given, extending our results in some cases to stable solutions.

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A logistic equation with nonlocal interactions

We consider here a logistic equation, modeling processes of nonlocal character both in the diffusion and proliferation terms. More precisely, for populations that propagate according to a Lévy process and can reach resources in a neighborhood of their position, we compare (and find explicit threshold for survival) the local and nonlocal case. As ambient space, we can consider: bounded domains, periodic environments, and transition problems, where the environment consists of a block of infinitesimal diffusion and an adjacent nonlocal one. In each of these cases, we analyze the existence/nonexistence of solutions in terms of the spectral properties of the domain. In particular, we give a detailed description of the fact that nonlocal populations may better adapt to sparse resources and small environments.

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Pohozaev identities for anisotropic integro-differential operators

We establish Pohozaev identities and integration by parts type formulas for anisotropic integro-differential operators of order $2s$, with $s\in(0,1)$. These identities involve local boundary terms, in which the quantity $u/d^s|_{\partialΩ}$ plays the role that $\partial u/\partialν$ plays in the second order case. Here, $u$ is any solution to $Lu=f(x,u)$ in $Ω$, with $u=0$ in $\mathbb R^n\setminusΩ$, and $d$ is the distance to $\partialΩ$.

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The Dirichlet problem for nonlocal operators with singular kernels: convex and nonconvex domains

We study the interior regularity of solutions to the Dirichlet problem $Lu=g$ in $Ω$, $u=0$ in $\R^n\setminusΩ$, for anisotropic operators of fractional type $$ Lu(x)= \int_{0}^{+\infty}\,dρ\int_{S^{n-1}}\,da(ω)\, \frac{ 2u(x)-u(x+ρω)-u(x-ρω)}{ρ^{1+2s}}.$$ Here, $a$ is any measure on~$S^{n-1}$ (a prototype example for~$L$ is given by the sum of one-dimensional fractional Laplacians in fixed, given directions). When $a\in C^\infty(S^{n-1})$ and $g$ is $C^\infty(Ω)$, solutions are known to be $C^\infty$ inside~$Ω$ (but not up to the boundary). However, when $a$ is a general measure, or even when $a$ is $L^\infty(S^{n-1})$, solutions are only known to be $C^{3s}$ inside $Ω$. We prove here that, for general measures $a$, solutions are $C^{1+3s-ε}$ inside $Ω$ for all $ε>0$ whenever $Ω$ is convex. When $a\in L^{\infty}(S^{n-1})$, we show that the same holds in all $C^{1,1}$ domains. In particular, solutions always possess a classical first derivative. The assumptions on the domain are sharp, since if the domain is not convex and the spectral measure is singular, we construct an explicit counterexample for which $u$ is \emph{not} $C^{3s+ε}$ for any $ε>0$ -- even if $g$ and $Ω$ are $C^\infty$.

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Nonlocal Delaunay surfaces

We construct codimension 1 surfaces of any dimension that minimize a periodic nonlocal perimeter functional among surfaces that are periodic, cylindrically symmetric and decreasing. These surfaces may be seen as a nonlocal analogue of the classical Delaunay surfaces (onduloids). For small volume, most of their mass tends to be concentrated in a periodic array and the surfaces are close to a periodic array of balls (in fact, we give explicit quantitative bounds on these facts).

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A nonlocal free boundary problem

Given~$s,σ\in(0,1)$ and a bounded domain~$Ω\subset\R^n$, we consider the following minimization problem of $s$-Dirichlet plus $σ$-perimeter type $$ [u]_{ H^s(\R^{2n}\setminus(Ω^c)^2) } + \Per_σ\left(\{u>0\},Ω\right), $$ where~$[ \cdot]_{H^s}$ is the fractional Gagliardo seminorm and $\Per_σ$ is the fractional perimeter. Among other results, we prove a monotonicity formula for the minimizers, glueing lemmata, uniform energy bounds, convergence results, a regularity theory for the planar cones and a trivialization result for the flat case. Several classical free boundary problems are limit cases of the one that we consider in this paper, as $s\nearrow1$, $σ\nearrow1$ or~$σ\searrow0$.

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