Improved quantitative unique continuation for complex-valued drift equations in the plane

Abstract

In this article, we investigate the quantitative unique continuation properties of complex-valued solutions to drift equations in the plane. We consider equations of the form $\Delta u + W \cdot \nabla u = 0$ in $\mathbb{R}^2$, where $W = W_1 + i W_2$ with each $W_j$ real-valued. Under the assumptions that $W_j \in L^{q_j}$ for some $q_1 \in [2, \infty]$, $q_2 \in (2, \infty]$, and $W_2$ exhibits rapid decay at infinity, we prove new global unique continuation estimates. This improvement is accomplished by reducing our equations to vector-valued Beltrami systems. Our results rely on a novel order of vanishing estimate combined with a finite iteration scheme.