# American Institute of Mathematical Sciences

November  2019, 39(11): 6761-6784. doi: 10.3934/dcds.2019294

## On the uniqueness of bound state solutions of a semilinear equation with weights

 Departamento de Matemática, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Casilla 306, Correo 22, Santiago, Chile

Received  May 2019 Revised  May 2019 Published  August 2019

Fund Project: This research was supported by FONDECYT-1190102 for the first and second author, FONDECYT-1160540 for the second author and FONDECYT-1170665 for third author.

We consider radial solutions of a general elliptic equation involving a weighted Laplace operator. We establish the uniqueness of the radial bound state solutions to
 $\mbox{div}\big(\mathsf A\, \nabla v\big)+\mathsf B\, f(v) = 0\, , \quad\lim\limits_{|x|\to+\infty}v(x) = 0, \quad x\in\mathbb R^n, ~~~~{(P)}$
 $n>2$
, where
 $\mathsf A$
and
 $\mathsf B$
are two positive, radial, smooth functions defined on
 $\mathbb R^n\setminus\{0\}$
. We assume that the nonlinearity
 $f\in C(-c, c)$
,
 $0 is an odd function satisfying some convexity and growth conditions, and has a zero at $ b>0 $, is non positive and not identically 0 in $ (0, b) $, positive in $ (b, c) $, and is differentiable in $ (0, c) $. Citation: Carmen Cortázar, Marta García-Huidobro, Pilar Herreros. On the uniqueness of bound state solutions of a semilinear equation with weights. Discrete & Continuous Dynamical Systems, 2019, 39 (11) : 6761-6784. doi: 10.3934/dcds.2019294 ##### References:  [1] C. C. Chen and C. S. Lin, Uniqueness of the ground state solutions of$\Delta u+f(u) = 0$in$\mathbb R^N, N\ge 3, $, Comm. in Partial Differential Equations, 16 (1991), 1549-1572. doi: 10.1080/03605309108820811. Google Scholar [2] C. V. Coffman, Uniqueness of the ground state solution of$\Delta u-u+u^3 = 0$and a variational characterization of other solutions, Archive Rat. Mech. Anal., 46 (1972), 81-95. doi: 10.1007/BF00250684. Google Scholar [3] C. Cortázar, P. Felmer and M. Elgueta, On a semilinear elliptic problem in$\mathbb R^N$with a non Lipschitzian nonlinearity, Advances in Differential Equations, 1 (1996), 199-218. Google Scholar [4] C. Cortázar, P. Felmer and M. Elgueta, Uniqueness of positive solutions of$\Delta u+f(u) = 0$in$\mathbb R^N$,$N\ge 3$, Archive Rat. Mech. Anal., 142 (1998), 127-141. doi: 10.1007/s002050050086. Google Scholar [5] C. Cortázar and M. García-Huidobro, On the uniqueness of ground state solutions of a semilinear equation containing a weighted Laplacian, Comm. Pure. Appl. Anal., 5 (2006), 813-826. doi: 10.3934/cpaa.2006.5.813. Google Scholar [6] C. Cortázar, J. Dolbeault, M. García-Huidobro and R. Manásevich, Existence of sign changing solutions for an equation with a weighted p-Laplace operator, Nonlinear Anal., 110 (2014), 1-22. doi: 10.1016/j.na.2014.07.016. Google Scholar [7] C. Cortázar, M. García-Huidobro and C. Yarur, On the uniqueness of the second bound state solution of a semilinear equation, Annales de l'Institut Henri Poincaré - Analyse non linéaire, 26 (2009), 2091-2110. doi: 10.1016/j.anihpc.2009.01.004. Google Scholar [8] C. Cortázar, M. García-Huidobroand and C. Yarur, On the uniqueness of sign changing bound state solutions of a semilinear equation, Ann. Inst. H. Poincaré Anal. Non Linéaire, 28 (2011), 599-621. doi: 10.1016/j.anihpc.2011.04.002. Google Scholar [9] C. Cortázar, M. García-Huidobro and C. Yarur, On the existence of sign changing bound state solutions of a quasilinear equation, J. Differential Equations, 254 (2013), 2603-2625. doi: 10.1016/j.jde.2012.12.015. Google Scholar [10] L. Erbe and M. Tang, Uniqueness theorems for positive solutions of quasilinear elliptic equations in a ball, J. Diff. Equations, 138 (1997), 351-379. doi: 10.1006/jdeq.1997.3279. Google Scholar [11] B. Franchi, E. Lanconelli and J. Serrin, Existence and Uniqueness of nonnegative solutions of quasilinear equations in$\mathbb R^n$, Advances in Mathematics, 118 (1996), 177-243. doi: 10.1006/aima.1996.0021. Google Scholar [12] M. García-Huidobro and D. Henao, On the uniqueness of positive solutions of a quasilinear equation containing a weighted$p$-Laplacian, Comm. in Contemp. Math., 10 (2008), 405-432. doi: 10.1142/S0219199708002831. Google Scholar [13] R. Kajikiya, Necessary and sufficient condition for existence and uniqueness of nodal solutions to sublinear elliptic equations., Adv. Differential Equations, 6 (2001), 1317-1346. Google Scholar [14] M. K. Kwong, Uniqueness of positive solutions of$\Delta u-u+u^p = 0$, Archive Rat. Mech. Anal., 105 (1989), 243-266. doi: 10.1007/BF00251502. Google Scholar [15] K. McLeod, Uniqueness of positive radial solutions of$\Delta u+f(u) = 0$in$\mathbb R^N $,Ⅱ, Trans. Amer. Math. Soc., 339 (1993), 495-505. Google Scholar [16] K. McLeod and J. Serrin, Uniqueness of positive radial solutions of$\Delta u+f(u) = 0$in$\mathbb R^N $, Arch. Rational Mech. Anal., 99 (1987), 115-145. doi: 10.1007/BF00275874. Google Scholar [17] K. McLeod, W. C. Troy and F. B. Weissler, Radial solutions of$\Delta u+f(u) = 0$with prescribed numbers of zeros, J. Differential Equations, 83 (1990), 368-378. doi: 10.1016/0022-0396(90)90063-U. Google Scholar [18] L. Peletier and J. Serrin, Uniqueness of positive solutions of quasilinear equations, Archive Rat. Mech. Anal., 81 (1983), 181-197. doi: 10.1007/BF00250651. Google Scholar [19] L. Peletier and J. Serrin, Uniqueness of nonnegative solutions of quasilinear equations, J. Diff. Equat., 61 (1986), 380-397. doi: 10.1016/0022-0396(86)90112-9. Google Scholar [20] P. Pucci, M. Garca-Huidobro, R. Mansevich and J. Serrin, Qualitative properties of ground states for singular elliptic equations with weights, Ann. Mat. Pura Appl., (4) 185 (2006), S205–S243. doi: 10.1007/s10231-004-0143-3. Google Scholar [21] P. R. Pucci and J. Serrin, Uniqueness of ground states for quasilinear elliptic operators, Indiana Univ. Math. J., 47 (1998), 501-528. Google Scholar [22] J. Serrin and M. Tang, Uniqueness of ground states for quasilinear elliptic equations, Indiana Univ. Math. J., 49 (2000), 897-923. Google Scholar [23] S. Tanaka, On the uniqueness of solutions with prescribed numbers of zeros for a two-point boundary value problem, Differential Integral Equations, 20 (2007), 93-104. Google Scholar [24] S. Tanaka, Uniqueness of nodal radial solutions of superlinear elliptic equations in a ball, Proc. Roy. Soc. Edinburgh Sect. A, 138 (2008), 1331-1343. doi: 10.1017/S0308210507000431. Google Scholar [25] S. Tanaka, Uniqueness and nonuniqueness of nodal radial solutions of sublinear elliptic equations in a ball, Nonlinear Anal., 71 (2009), 5256-5267. doi: 10.1016/j.na.2009.04.009. Google Scholar [26] S. Tanaka, Uniqueness of sign-changing radial solutions for$\Delta u-u+|u|^{p-1}u=0$in some ball and annulus, J. Math. Anal. Appl., 439 (2016), 154-170. doi: 10.1016/j.jmaa.2016.02.036. Google Scholar [27] M. Tang, Uniqueness of positive radial solutions for$\Delta u-u+u^p=0$on an annulus, J. Differential Equations, 189 (2003), 148-160. doi: 10.1016/S0022-0396(02)00142-0. Google Scholar [28] W. Troy, The existence and uniqueness of bound state solutions of a semilinear equation, Proc. R. Soc. Lond. Ser. A Math. Phys. Eng. Sci., 461 (2005), 2941-2963. doi: 10.1098/rspa.2005.1482. Google Scholar [29] W. Troy, Uniqueness of positive ground state solutions of the logarithmic Schrdinger equation, Arch. Ration. Mech. Anal., 222 (2016), 1581-1600. doi: 10.1007/s00205-016-1028-5. Google Scholar show all references ##### References:  [1] C. C. Chen and C. S. Lin, Uniqueness of the ground state solutions of$\Delta u+f(u) = 0$in$\mathbb R^N, N\ge 3, $, Comm. in Partial Differential Equations, 16 (1991), 1549-1572. doi: 10.1080/03605309108820811. Google Scholar [2] C. V. Coffman, Uniqueness of the ground state solution of$\Delta u-u+u^3 = 0$and a variational characterization of other solutions, Archive Rat. Mech. Anal., 46 (1972), 81-95. doi: 10.1007/BF00250684. Google Scholar [3] C. Cortázar, P. Felmer and M. Elgueta, On a semilinear elliptic problem in$\mathbb R^N$with a non Lipschitzian nonlinearity, Advances in Differential Equations, 1 (1996), 199-218. Google Scholar [4] C. Cortázar, P. Felmer and M. Elgueta, Uniqueness of positive solutions of$\Delta u+f(u) = 0$in$\mathbb R^N$,$N\ge 3$, Archive Rat. Mech. Anal., 142 (1998), 127-141. doi: 10.1007/s002050050086. Google Scholar [5] C. Cortázar and M. García-Huidobro, On the uniqueness of ground state solutions of a semilinear equation containing a weighted Laplacian, Comm. Pure. Appl. Anal., 5 (2006), 813-826. doi: 10.3934/cpaa.2006.5.813. Google Scholar [6] C. Cortázar, J. Dolbeault, M. García-Huidobro and R. Manásevich, Existence of sign changing solutions for an equation with a weighted p-Laplace operator, Nonlinear Anal., 110 (2014), 1-22. doi: 10.1016/j.na.2014.07.016. Google Scholar [7] C. Cortázar, M. García-Huidobro and C. Yarur, On the uniqueness of the second bound state solution of a semilinear equation, Annales de l'Institut Henri Poincaré - Analyse non linéaire, 26 (2009), 2091-2110. doi: 10.1016/j.anihpc.2009.01.004. Google Scholar [8] C. Cortázar, M. García-Huidobroand and C. Yarur, On the uniqueness of sign changing bound state solutions of a semilinear equation, Ann. Inst. H. Poincaré Anal. Non Linéaire, 28 (2011), 599-621. doi: 10.1016/j.anihpc.2011.04.002. Google Scholar [9] C. Cortázar, M. García-Huidobro and C. Yarur, On the existence of sign changing bound state solutions of a quasilinear equation, J. Differential Equations, 254 (2013), 2603-2625. doi: 10.1016/j.jde.2012.12.015. Google Scholar [10] L. Erbe and M. Tang, Uniqueness theorems for positive solutions of quasilinear elliptic equations in a ball, J. Diff. Equations, 138 (1997), 351-379. doi: 10.1006/jdeq.1997.3279. Google Scholar [11] B. Franchi, E. Lanconelli and J. Serrin, Existence and Uniqueness of nonnegative solutions of quasilinear equations in$\mathbb R^n$, Advances in Mathematics, 118 (1996), 177-243. doi: 10.1006/aima.1996.0021. Google Scholar [12] M. García-Huidobro and D. Henao, On the uniqueness of positive solutions of a quasilinear equation containing a weighted$p$-Laplacian, Comm. in Contemp. Math., 10 (2008), 405-432. doi: 10.1142/S0219199708002831. Google Scholar [13] R. Kajikiya, Necessary and sufficient condition for existence and uniqueness of nodal solutions to sublinear elliptic equations., Adv. Differential Equations, 6 (2001), 1317-1346. Google Scholar [14] M. K. Kwong, Uniqueness of positive solutions of$\Delta u-u+u^p = 0$, Archive Rat. Mech. Anal., 105 (1989), 243-266. doi: 10.1007/BF00251502. Google Scholar [15] K. McLeod, Uniqueness of positive radial solutions of$\Delta u+f(u) = 0$in$\mathbb R^N $,Ⅱ, Trans. Amer. Math. Soc., 339 (1993), 495-505. Google Scholar [16] K. McLeod and J. Serrin, Uniqueness of positive radial solutions of$\Delta u+f(u) = 0$in$\mathbb R^N $, Arch. Rational Mech. Anal., 99 (1987), 115-145. doi: 10.1007/BF00275874. Google Scholar [17] K. McLeod, W. C. Troy and F. B. Weissler, Radial solutions of$\Delta u+f(u) = 0$with prescribed numbers of zeros, J. Differential Equations, 83 (1990), 368-378. doi: 10.1016/0022-0396(90)90063-U. Google Scholar [18] L. Peletier and J. Serrin, Uniqueness of positive solutions of quasilinear equations, Archive Rat. Mech. Anal., 81 (1983), 181-197. doi: 10.1007/BF00250651. Google Scholar [19] L. Peletier and J. Serrin, Uniqueness of nonnegative solutions of quasilinear equations, J. Diff. Equat., 61 (1986), 380-397. doi: 10.1016/0022-0396(86)90112-9. Google Scholar [20] P. Pucci, M. Garca-Huidobro, R. Mansevich and J. Serrin, Qualitative properties of ground states for singular elliptic equations with weights, Ann. Mat. Pura Appl., (4) 185 (2006), S205–S243. doi: 10.1007/s10231-004-0143-3. Google Scholar [21] P. R. Pucci and J. Serrin, Uniqueness of ground states for quasilinear elliptic operators, Indiana Univ. Math. J., 47 (1998), 501-528. Google Scholar [22] J. Serrin and M. Tang, Uniqueness of ground states for quasilinear elliptic equations, Indiana Univ. Math. J., 49 (2000), 897-923. Google Scholar [23] S. Tanaka, On the uniqueness of solutions with prescribed numbers of zeros for a two-point boundary value problem, Differential Integral Equations, 20 (2007), 93-104. Google Scholar [24] S. Tanaka, Uniqueness of nodal radial solutions of superlinear elliptic equations in a ball, Proc. Roy. Soc. Edinburgh Sect. A, 138 (2008), 1331-1343. doi: 10.1017/S0308210507000431. Google Scholar [25] S. Tanaka, Uniqueness and nonuniqueness of nodal radial solutions of sublinear elliptic equations in a ball, Nonlinear Anal., 71 (2009), 5256-5267. doi: 10.1016/j.na.2009.04.009. Google Scholar [26] S. Tanaka, Uniqueness of sign-changing radial solutions for$\Delta u-u+|u|^{p-1}u=0$in some ball and annulus, J. Math. Anal. Appl., 439 (2016), 154-170. doi: 10.1016/j.jmaa.2016.02.036. Google Scholar [27] M. Tang, Uniqueness of positive radial solutions for$\Delta u-u+u^p=0$on an annulus, J. Differential Equations, 189 (2003), 148-160. doi: 10.1016/S0022-0396(02)00142-0. Google Scholar [28] W. Troy, The existence and uniqueness of bound state solutions of a semilinear equation, Proc. R. Soc. Lond. Ser. A Math. Phys. Eng. Sci., 461 (2005), 2941-2963. doi: 10.1098/rspa.2005.1482. Google Scholar [29] W. Troy, Uniqueness of positive ground state solutions of the logarithmic Schrdinger equation, Arch. Ration. Mech. 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