Document Type

Article

Publication Date

2-1-2005

Publication Title

Transactions of the American Mathematical Society

Abstract

We derive the Euler-Lagrange equation (also known in this setting as the Aronsson-Euler equation) for absolute minimizers of the L ∞ variational problem inf∥∇ 0u∥L∞(Ω), u = g ε Lip(∂Ω) on ∂Ω, where Ω ⊂ G is an open subset of a Carnot group, ∇ 0u denotes the horizontal gradient of u: Ω ℝ R, and the Lipschitz class is defined in relation to the Carnot-Carathéodory metric. In particular, we show that absolute minimizers are infinite harmonic in the viscosity sense. As a corollary we obtain the uniqueness of absolute minimizers in a large class of groups. This result extends previous work of Jensen and of Crandall, Evans and Gariepy. We also derive the Aronsson-Euler equation for more "regular" absolutely minimizing Lipschitz extensions corresponding to those Carnot-Carathéodory metrics which are associated to "free" systems of vector fields.

Keywords

Absolute minimizers, Sub-riemannian geometry

Volume

357

Issue

2

First Page

795

Last Page

823

DOI

10.1090/S0002-9947-04-03601-3

ISSN

00029947

Comments

Archived as published. Open access paper.

Included in

Mathematics Commons

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