Remarks on minimizers for $(p,q)$-Laplace equations with two parameters

Abstract: We study in detail the existence, nonexistence and behavior of global minimizers, ground states and corresponding energy levels of the $(p,q)$-Laplace equation $-\Delta_p u -\Delta_q u = \alpha |u|^{p-2}u + \beta |u|^{q-2}u$ in a bounded domain $\Omega \subset \mathbb{R}^N$ under zero Dirichlet boundary condition, where $p > q > 1$ and $\alpha, \beta \in \mathbb{R}$. A curve on the $(\alpha,\beta)$-plane which allocates a set of the existence of ground states and the multiplicity of positive solutions is constructed. Additionally, we show that eigenfunctions of the $p$- and $q$-Laplacians under zero Dirichlet boundary condition are linearly independent.