Eigenfunctions of Periodic Differential Operators Analytic in a Strip

Abstract

Ordinary differential operators with periodic coefficients analytic in a strip act on a Hardy–Hilbert space of analytic functions with inner product defined by integration over a period on the boundary of the strip. Simple examples show that eigenfunctions may form a complete set for a narrow strip, but completeness may be lost for a wide strip. Completeness of the eigenfunctions in the Hardy–Hilbert space is established for regular second order operators with matrix-valued coefficients when the leading coefficient satisfies a positive real part condition throughout the strip.