On fractional critical problems with multi-polar Hardy potentials

Abstract

We investigate the existence of positive solutions to fractional equations presenting a double criticality: a multi-polar Hardy-type potential and a Sobolev critical nonlinearity. The nonlocal nature of the operator and the absence of explicit ground states for the single-pole equation stand as major difficulties. We overcome these obstacles by passing to an extended formulation of the problem and by establishing sharp asymptotic estimates for the solutions in the case of a single pole. Then, through a concentration-compactness argument, we show that the existence of minimizers is dictated by the magnitude of the masses and the mutual distances between the corresponding poles.