On a class of integral systems

Abstract

We study spectral problems for two--dimensional integral system with two given non-decreasing functions $R_1$, $R_2$ on an interval $[0,b)$ which is a generalization of the Krein string. Associated to this system are the maximal linear relation $T_{\max}$ and the minimal linear relation $T_{\min}$ in the space $L^2(R_2)$ which are connected by $T_{\max}=T_{\min}^*$. It is shown that the limit point condition at $b$ for this system is equivalent to the strong limit point condition for the linear relation $T_{\max}$. In the limit circle case the strong limit point condition fails to hold on $T_{\max}$ but it is still satisfied on a subspace $T_N^*$ of $T_{\max}$ characterized by the Neumann boundary condition at $b$. The notion of the principal Titchmarsh-Weyl coefficient of this integral system is introduced both in the limit point case and in the limit circle case. Boundary triples for the linear relation $T_{\max}$ in the limit point case (and for $T_{N}^*$ in the limit circle case) are constructed and it is shown that the corresponding Weyl function coincides with the principal Titchmarsh-Weyl coefficient of the integral system. The notion of the dual integral system is introduced by reversing the order of $R_1$ and $R_2$. It is shown that the principal Titchmarsh-Weyl coefficients $q$ and $\widehat q$ of the direct and the dual integral systems are related by the equality $\lambda \widehat q(\lambda) = -1/q(\lambda)$ both in the regular and the singular case.