Lifespan estimates for semilinear wave equations with space dependent damping and potential

Abstract: In this work, we investigate the influence of general damping and potential terms on the blow-up and lifespan estimates for energy solutions to power-type semilinear wave equations. The space-dependent damping and potential functions are assumed to be critical or short range, spherically symmetric perturbation. The blow up results and the upper bound of lifespan estimates are obtained by the so-called test function method. The key ingredient is to construct special positive solutions to the linear dual problem with the desired asymptotic behavior, which is reduced, in turn, to constructing solutions to certain elliptic "eigenvalue" problems.