| Abstract: | In 6], T. I. Vogel studied a free boundary problem originating in the galvanization process. He showed that if the given boundary Γ* is starlike or convex, then so is the free boundary solution Γ. Our purpose is to generalize Vogel's second result by showing (under certain assumptions) that Γ cannot have more (local) maxima or minima (relative to a given direction) than Γ*; also that Γ cannot have more inflection points or greater total curvature than Γ*. The author has already proven analogous results for the Bernoulli free boundary problem in 1], 2] and 3]. |
