Radially Symmetric Solutions of a Nonlinear Elliptic Equation

We investigate the existence and asymptotic behavior of positive, radially symmetric singular solutions of w′′ N − 1 /r w′ − |w|p−1w 0, r > 0. We focus on the parameter regime N > 2 and 1 < p < N/ N − 2 where the equation has the closed form, positive singular solution w1 4 − 2 N − 2 p − 1 / p − 1 2 1/ p−1 r−2/ p−1 , r > 0. Our advance is to develop a technique to efficiently classify the behavior of solutions which are positive on a maximal positive interval rmin, rmax . Our approach is to transform the nonautonomous w equation into an autonomous ODE. This reduces the problem to analyzing the behavior of solutions in the phase plane of the autonomous equation. We then show how specific solutions of the autonomous equation give rise to the existence of several new families of singular solutions of the w equation. Specifically, we prove the existence of a family of singular solutions which exist on the entire interval 0,∞ , and which satisfy 0 < w r < w1 r for all r > 0. An important open problem for the nonautonomous equation is presented. Its solution would lead to the existence of a new family of “super singular” solutions which lie entirely above w1 r .