The least limit point of the spectrum associated with sinǵular differential operators

Abstract

Let τ be the formally self-adjoint differential operator denned bywhere the pr(x) are real-valued, , and p0(x) > 0. Then τ determines a real symmetric linear operator T0, given by T0f = τf, whose domain D(T0) consists of those functions f in the complex space L2(0, ∞) which have compact support and 2n continuous derivatives in (0, ∞) and vanish in some right neighbourhood of x = 0 ((7), p. 27–8). Since D(T0) is dense in L2(0, ∞), T0 has a self-adjoint extension T. We denote by μ the least limit point of the spectrum of T. The operator T may not be unique, but all such T have the same essential spectrum ((7), p. 28) and therefore μ does not depend on the choice of T.