Eigenvalue asymptotics for an elliptic boundary problem involving an indefinite weight

We are concerned here with the eigenvalue asymptotics for a non-selfadjoint elliptic boundary problem involving an indefinite weight function which vanishes on a set of positive measure. The asymptotic behaviour of the eigenvalues is well known for the case of second order operators. However for higher order operators, results have only been established under the restriction that the order of the operator exceeds the dimension of the underlying Euclidean space in which the problem is set. In this paper we establish the eigenvalue asymptotics for the case of higher order operators without any such restriction.Supported in part by the John Knopfmacher Centre for Applicable Analysis and Number Theory, University of the Witwatersrand.