English

Strictly stable solutions in uniformly convex planar domains may have nonconvex superlevel sets

Analysis of PDEs 2026-07-07 v1

Abstract

We construct smooth, uniformly convex planar domains that admit minimal, strictly stable solutions of a semilinear Dirichlet problem whose superlevel sets are nonetheless nonconvex. The class of admissible nonlinearities includes, in particular, two prototypical cases: the Gelfand-type nonlinearity eue^u and the family of shifted power-type nonlinearities (a+u)p(a+u)^p, where a>0a>0 and p>1p>1. By applying the elementary scaling properties of the Dirichlet problem, we also show that the same lack of convexity of superlevel sets holds for the corresponding parameter-dependent equations. These results provide a negative answer to a question posed by Brezis, who inquired whether the stability of a solution necessarily entails quasiconcavity for these prototypical stable configurations.

Keywords

Cite

@article{arxiv.2607.06031,
  title  = {Strictly stable solutions in uniformly convex planar domains may have nonconvex superlevel sets},
  author = {Yi Ru-Ya Zhang},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2607.06031},
  year   = {2026}
}

Comments

35 Pages. Dedicated to Xavier Cabré on the occasion of his 60th birthday