From $p_0(n)$ to $p_0(n+2)$

Abstract

In this note we study the global existence of small data solutions to the Cauchy problem for the semi-linear wave equation with a not effective scale-invariant damping term, namely \[ v_{tt}-\triangle v + \frac2{1+t}\,v_t = |v|^p, \qquad v(0,x)=v_0(x),\quad v_t(0,x)=v_1(x), \] where $p>1$, $n\ge 2$. We prove blow-up in finite time in the subcritical range $p\in(1,p_2(n)]$ and an existence result for $p>p_2(n)$, $n=2,3$. In this way we find the critical exponent for small data solutions to this problem. All these considerations lead to the conjecture $p_2(n)=p_0(n+2)$ for $n\ge2$, where $p_0(n)$ is the Strauss exponent for the classical wave equation.