A priori bounds for semilinear equations and a new class of critical exponents for Lipschitz domains

A priori bounds for positive, very weak solutions of semilinear elliptic boundary value problems −Δu=f(x,u) on a bounded domain Ω⊂Rn with u=0 on ∂Ω are studied, where the nonlinearity 0?f(x,s) grows at most like sp. If Ω is a Lipschitz domain we exhibit two exponents p_* and p^*, which depend on the boundary behavior of the Green function and on the smallest interior opening angle of ∂Ω. We prove that for 1<p<p_* all positive very weak solutions are a priori bounded in L^∞. For p>p^* we construct a nonlinearity f(x,s)=a(x)sp together with a positive very weak solution which does not belong to L^∞. Finally we exhibit a class of domains for which p_*=p^*. For such domains we have found a true critical exponent for very weak solutions. In the case of smooth domains is an exponent which is well known from classical work of Brezis, Turner H. Brezis, R.E.L. Turner, On a class of superlinear elliptic problems, Comm. Partial Differential Equations 2 (1977) 601-614] and from recent work of Quittner, Souplet P. Quittner, Ph. Souplet, A priori estimates and existence for elliptic systems via bootstrap in weighted Lebesgue spaces, Arch. Ration. Mech. Anal. 174 (2004) 49-81].