Let $E$ be a UMD Banach space, and $L$ a positive self-adjoint operator in $\mathrm{L}^2$ of Laplace type, for which the imaginary powers $L^{-\ri t}$ form a $C_0$-group of exponential growth $0\leq\alpha\lt \pi$ on $\mathrm{L}^p(E)$, where $1\lt p\lt\lt \infty$. Suppose $G(z)$ is holomorphic inside and on the boundary of the sector $\{z:z\neq0,\ |\arg z|\leq\phi\}$, and $z^\kappa G(z)\rightarrow0$ uniformly as $z\rightarrow\infty$ for some $\kappa\gt0$ and $\phi\gt\alpha$. Then $G(tL)$ $(t \gt0)$ defines a bounded family of linear operators on $\mathrm{L}^p(E)$; and the maximal operator $f\mapsto\sup_{t \gt 0}\|G(tL)f\|_E$ is bounded on the domain of $\log L$. The proof uses transference methods. These hypotheses hold for the maximal solution operators for the heat, wave and Schrödinger equations, and for Cesàro sums.

AMS 2000 Mathematics subject classification: Primary 47D03; 42B25; 47D09