Observability and stabilizability for Grushin-Type parabolic equations in the whole space

Abstract

We study observability and stabilization for the whole-space Grushin heat equation $$ \partial_t u-Δ_γu=0,\qquad Δ_γ:=Δ_x+|x|^{2γ}Δ_y,\qquad (t,x,y)\in(0,T)\times\mathbb{R}^n\times\mathbb{R}^m,\quad γ>0. $$ For product sets $E=E_1\times E_2$, we identify three observability regimes in which thickness, distance from the degeneracy set $\{x=0\}$, and local density near that set play different roles. (i) In the subcritical regime $0<γ<1$, the observability inequality holds for every $T>0$ if and only if both $E_1$ and $E_2$ are thick; hence $T_{\min}(E)=0$. (ii) At the critical exponent $γ=1$, if $E_2=\mathbb{R}^m$ and $E_1\subset\mathbb{R}^n$ is thick, we determine the exact minimal observable time: $$ T_{\min}(E)=\frac{a_{\mathrm{ess}}(E_1)^2}{2n},\qquad a_{\mathrm{ess}}(E_1):=\operatorname*{ess\,inf}_{x\in E_1}|x|. $$ Thus, the threshold depends on the essential distance of $E_1$ from the degeneracy set. (iii) In the supercritical regime $γ>1$, we consider $n=1$, $E_2=\mathbb{R}^m$ and thick sets $E_1\subset\mathbb{R}$. If $a_{\mathrm{ess}}(E_1)>0$, observability fails for every $T>0$, so that $T_{\min}(E)=+\infty$. If $a_{\mathrm{ess}}(E_1)=0$, observability depends on the density of $E_1$ near $0$, measured by $$ D_{E_1}(r):=\log\!\left(\frac{2r}{|E_1\cap(-r,r)|}\right),\qquad L_{E_1}:=\limsup_{r\downarrow0}r^2D_{E_1}(r). $$ If $L_{E_1}=0$, then $T_{\min}(E)=0$; if $0 0$, exponential and complete stabilizability hold if and only if both $E_1$ and $E_2$ are thick. The stabilization criterion is therefore independent of $γ$.