An Orlicz space approach to exponential elliptic problems in higher dimensions

Abstract

We consider semilinear elliptic problems of the form \[ -\Delta u + \lambda u = f(x,u), \quad u\in H^1_0(A), \] where $A\subset\mathbb{R}^N$, $N\geq3$, is either a bounded or unbounded annulus, and $\lambda \geq0$. We study a broad class of nonlinearities $f$ with superlinear growth at infinity, including exponential- and power-type ones. Under suitable assumptions, we establish the existence of a positive nonradial solution via techniques in the spirit of Szulkin's nonsmooth critical point theory, applied within a convex cone in Orlicz spaces. Notably, the Trudinger-Moser inequality fails in the whole Sobolev space $H^1_0(A)$.