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Use $D_j=-i{\partial }_{x_j}$, so the Fourier transform of $D^{\alpha }u$ is ${\lambda }^{\alpha }\hat{u}$. Distinguish the full degree-$N$ polynomial $P(\lambda )$ from its homogeneous top-degree part $p_N(\lambda )$, the principal symbol. The elliptic differential operator condition isIt does not require the full polynomial to be nonzero at small frequencies. Compactness of the unit sphere gives $c_0={\min }_{|\theta |=1}|p_N(\theta )|>0$. Homogeneity and the lower-degree remainder implyFor sufficiently large $|\lambda |$ the second term is at most half the first, so the high-frequency lower bound for an elliptic polynomial isHere $⟨\lambda ⟩$ is the Japanese bracket. The order-zero case just means a nonzero constant and is immediate.

For real $s$, the Sobolev space definition with the current Fourier normalization isChanging the harmless constant in the norm gives the same space. A distribution on $X$ belongs to the Local Sobolev space $H_{\mathrm{loc}}^s(X)$ when $\chi u$, extended by zero outside $X$, belongs to $H^s({\mathbb{R}}^n)$ for every test function $\chi \in C_c^{\infty }(X)$.

A compactly supported distribution of finite order of a distribution $m$ has a smooth Fourier transform satisfying $|\hat{u}(\lambda )|\le C(1+|\lambda |{)}^m$, by applying the finite-order estimate to a fixed cutoff times the exponential. Thus its weighted squared transform is bounded by $C⟨\lambda {⟩}^{2(s+m)}$. This is integrable precisely in the sufficient range $2(s+m)<-n$, and provesThis is the negative Sobolev regularity of a compactly supported distribution; the strict inequality is important, and is not a claim that this sufficient threshold is optimal for each distribution.

To establish elliptic regularity without assuming the answer as an a priori smoothness hypothesis, first obtain a global constant-coefficient gain. For a compactly supported distribution $w$ with $P(D)w\in H^q$, the polynomial lower bound at high frequency givesOn $|\lambda |\le R$, the transform of $w$ is smooth and bounded. Therefore $P(D)w\in H^q$ implies $w\in H^{q+N}$. Possible low-frequency zeros of $P$ are harmless; we never divide by them.

Two elementary mapping facts supply the variable-coefficient argument. Distributional derivatives of order $j$ map $H^r$ into $H^{r-j}$. Sobolev multiplication by a smooth cutoff is bounded on $H^r$ for every real $r$, including negative ones. Indeed, for a compactly supported smooth $a$, the Peetre weight inequalityand $\widehat{aw}=(2\pi {)}^{-n}\hat{a}\ast \hat{w}$ reduce the bound to Young's convolution inequality with the integrable kernel $⟨\zeta {⟩}^{|r|}|\hat{a}(\zeta )|$. Smooth coefficients only need this property on compact subsets, where they can be multiplied by another cutoff.

Write the lower-order part as $B={\sum }_{|\alpha |<N}{f}_{\alpha }{D}^{\alpha }$, with $N\ge 1$, and suppose provisionally that $u\in H_{\mathrm{loc}}^r$ on a relatively compact neighborhood. For a cutoff function $\chi$ supported there,The bracket is the operator commutator. Its order is at most $N-1$: in the product rule, every surviving term has at least one derivative falling on $\chi$. Choose a second cutoff function equal to one near $\mathrm{supp}\chi$ when estimating the products. The derivative and smooth-multiplication bounds then giveThe global gain just proved applies to the compactly supported distribution $\chi u$, and yieldsThis is the cutoff bootstrap for local elliptic regularity; it works for real indices, not just nonnegative integers.

There is always a legitimate starting index. Around any fixed point choose ${\chi }_0=1$ on a smaller neighborhood. The compactly supported distribution ${\chi }_{0}u$ has the negative Sobolev regularity proved above, so $u\in H_{\mathrm{loc}}^{r_0}$ on that neighborhood for some finite $r_0$. The index need not be uniform over all of $X$. Repeating the one-step gain finitely many times reaches $s+N$, or the target is already reached if $r_0\ge s+N$. Since the point was arbitrary,For $N=0$ the result follows directly by dividing by the nonzero constant.

Finally, if $Lu=0$, its forcing belongs to every Local Sobolev space. The gain consequently gives every local Sobolev order for $u$. For each integer $j\ge 0$, choose an order larger than $j+n/2$ and apply the Sobolev embedding theorem to a localized solution. It has a $C^j$ representative; the representatives agree because they represent the same distribution. Thus every distributional solution of $Lu=0$ is smooth on $X$.