Regularity theory for non-local almost minimal surfaces via Euler-Lagrange inequalities at small scales

Abstract

We extend the notion of non-local almost minimal sets introduced in [Dipierro, Valdinoci, and Villa, J. Math. Pures Appl. (2026)] by admitting lower-order powers for the remainder term. We combine classical techniques and a new, weaker version of the Euler-Lagrange inequalities (at a microscopic scale) to obtain $\mathcal{C}^{1,α}$-regularity for non-local almost minimal sets, up to Hausdorff dimension $n-3$. In turn, this formulation is well-suited for the non-local counterpart of the so-called Massari's problem for sets with prescribed mean curvature. In particular, such a generalization allows us to consider sets with $L^p$ non-local mean curvature (with $p\geq n/s$), which do not satisfy any curvature equation (neither in the classical nor in the viscosity sense). The results presented here lie beyond the reach of previously established methodologies. Indeed, the approach developed herein is based on a conceptual shift relative to the existing literature, which relied on a strong form of the Euler-Lagrange equation that is not available for general non-local almost minimal sets.