We explicitly describe all SO(7)-invariant almost quaternion-Hermitian structures on the twistor space of the six sphere and determine the types of their intrinsic torsion.
In this note, we prove that the CR manifold which is induced from the canonical parabolic geometry of a quaternionic contact (qc) manifold via a Fefferman-type construction is equivalent to the CR twistor space of the qc manifold defined by O. Biquard.
In a general and non metrical framework, we introduce the class of co-CR quaternionic manifolds, which contains the class of quaternionic manifolds, whilst in dimension three it particularizes to give the Einstein-Weyl spaces. We show that these manifolds have a rich natural Twistor Theory and, along the way, we obtain a heaven space construction for quaternionic-Kaehler manifolds.
We show that a 1-parameter family Ricci flow ancient solutions arises from the natural collapsings of the twistor space of positive quaternion Kähler manifolds. We use these ancient solutions to show that a positive quaternion Kähler manifold is isometric to one of the Wolf spaces.
We characterise, in the setting of the Kodaira-Spencer deformation theory, the twistor spaces of (co-)CR quaternionic manifolds. As an application, we prove that, locally, the leaf space of any nowhere zero quaternionic vector field on a quaternionic manifold is endowed with a natural co-CR quaternionic structure. Also, for any positive integers $k$ and $l$, with $kl$ even, we obtain the geometric objects whose twistorial counterparts are complex manifolds endowed with a conjugation without fixed points and which preserves an embedded Riemann sphere whose normal bundle is $l$ times the line bu…
In a general and non metrical framework, we introduce the class of CR quaternionic manifolds containing the class of quaternionic manifolds, whilst in dimension three it particularizes to, essentially, give the conformal manifolds. We show that these manifolds have a rich natural Twistor Theory and, along the way, we obtain a heaven space construction for quaternionic manifolds.
New universal invariant operators are introduced in a class of geometries which include the quaternionic structures and their generalisations as well as 4-dimensional conformal (spin) geometries. It is shown that, in a broad sense, all invariants and invariant operators arise from these universal operators and that they may be used to reduce all invariants problems to corresponding algebraic problems involving homomorphisms between modules of certain parabolic subgroups of Lie groups. Explicit application of the operators is illustrated by the construction of all non-standard operators between…
We show that the CR structure on the twistor space of a quaternionic contact structure described by Biquard is normal if and only if the Ricci curvature of the Biquard connection commutes with the endomorphisms in the quaternionic structure of the contact distribution.
We first make a little survey of the twistor theory for hypercomplex, generalized hypercomplex, quaternionic or generalized quaternionic manifolds. This last theory was iniated by Pantilie, who shows that any generalized almost quaternionic manifold equipped with an appropriate connection admit a twistor space with an almost generalized complex structure. The aim of this article is to give an integrability criterion for this generalized almost complex structure and to give some examples especially in the case of generalized hyperkähler manifolds using the generalized Bismut connection, introdu…
We characterise the integrability of any co-CR quaternionic structure in terms of the curvature and a generalized torsion of the connection. Also, we apply this result to obtain, for example, the following. (1) New co-CR quaternionic structures built on vector bundles over a quaternionic manifold M, whose twistor spaces are holomorphic vector bundles over the twistor space Z of M. Moreover, all the holomorphic vector bundles over Z, which are positive and isotypic when restricted to the twistor lines, are obtained this way. (2) Under generic dimensional conditions, any manifold endowed with an…
A hyperkaehler manifold with a circle action fixing just one complex structure admits a natural a hyperholomorphic line bundle. This forms the basis for the construction of a corresponding quaternionic Kaehler manifold in the work of A.Haydys. We construct in this paper the corresponding holomorphic line bundle on twistor space and compute many examples, including monopole and Higgs bundle moduli spaces. We also show that the bundle on twistor space has a natural meromorphic connection which realizes it as the quantum line bundle for the hyperkaehler family of holomorphic symplectic structures…
Motivated by the quaternionic geometry corresponding to the homogeneous complex manifolds endowed with (holomorphically) embedded spheres, we introduce and initiate the study of the `quaternionic-like manifolds'. These contain, as particular subclasses, the CR quaternionic and the $ρ$-quaternionic manifolds. Moreover, the notion of `heaven space' finds its adequate level of generality in this setting: (essentially) any real analytic quaternionic-like manifold admits a (germ) unique heaven space, which is a $ρ$-quaternionic manifold. We, also, give a natural construction of homogeneous complex …
Let $M$ be a quaternionic manifold, $\dim M=4k$, whose twistor space is a Fano manifold. We prove the following: (a) $M$ admits a reduction to $Sp(1) \times GL(k,H)$ if and only if $M=HP^k$, (b) either $b_2(M)=0$ or $M=Gr_2(k+2,C)$. This generalizes results of S. Salamon and C.R. LeBrun, respectively, who obtained the same conclusions under the assumption that $M$ is a complete quaternionic-Kaehler manifold with positive scalar curvature.
We investigate the integrability of almost complex structures on the twistor space of an almost quaternionic manifold constructed with the help of a quaternionic connection. We show that if there is an integrable structure it is independent on the quaternionic connection. In dimension four, we express the anti-self-duality condition in terms of the Riemannian Ricci forms with respect to the associated quaternionic structure.
The geometry of the quaternionic anti-de Sitter fibration is studied in details. As a consequence, we obtain formulas for the horizontal Laplacian and subelliptic heat kernel of the fibration. The heat kernel formula is explicit enough to derive small time asymptotics. Related twistor spaces and corresponding heat kernels are also discussed and the connection to the quaternionic magnetic Laplacian is done.
We investigate the integrability of natural almost complex structures on the twistor space of an almost para-quaternionic manifold as well as the integrability of natural almost paracomplex structures on the reflector space of an almost para-quaternionic manifold constructed with the help of a para-quaternionic connection. We show that if there is an integrable structure it is independent on the para-quaternionic connection. In dimension four, we express the anti-self-duality condition in terms of the Riemannian Ricci forms with respect to the associated para-quaternionic structure.
The theory of slice regular functions of a quaternion variable is applied to the study of orthogonal complex structures on domains Ω of R^4. When Ω is a symmetric slice domain, the twistor transform of such a function is a holomorphic curve in the Klein quadric. The case in which Ω is the complement of a parabola is studied in detail and described by a rational quartic surface in the twistor space CP^3.
In contrast to the classical twistor spaces whose fibres are 2-spheres, we introduce twistor spaces over manifolds with almost quaternionic structures of the second kind in the sense of P. Libermann whose fibres are hyperbolic planes. We discuss two natural almost complex structures on such a twistor space and their holomorphic functions.
We show that given a conformal structure whose holonomy representation fixes a totally lightlike subspace of arbitrary dimension, there is always a local metric in the conformal class off a singular set which is Ricci-isotropic and gives rise to a parallel, totally lightlike distribution on the tangent bundle. This naturally applies to parallel spin tractors resp. twistor spinors on conformal spin manifolds and clarifies which twistor spinors are locally equivalent to parallel spinors. Moreover, we study the zero set of a twistor spinor using the curved orbit decomposition for parabolic geomet…
We study the Penrose transform for the `quaternionic objects' whose twistor spaces are complex manifolds endowed with locally complete families of embedded Riemann spheres with positive normal bundles.
The target space of a (4,0) supersymmetric two-dimensional sigma model with Wess-Zumino term has a connection with totally skew-symmetric torsion and holonomy contained in Sp(n)Sp(1) (resp. Sp(n)), QKT (resp. HKT)-spaces. We study the geometry of QKT, HKT manifold and their twistor spaces. We show that the Swann bundle of a QKT manifold admits a HKT structure with special symmetry if and only if the twistor space of the QKT manifold admits an almost hermitian structure with totally skew-symmetric Nijenhuis tensor, thus connecting two structures arising from quantum field theories and supersymm…
In this paper we introduce the twistor space of a Riemannian manifold with an even Clifford structure. This notion generalizes the twistor space of quaternion-Hermitian manifolds and weak-Spin(9) structures. We also construct almost complex structures on the twistor space for parallel even Clifford structures and check their integrability. Moreover, we prove that in some cases one can give Kähler and Nearly-Kähler metrics to these spaces.
We characterize HKT structure in terms of nondegenrate complex Poisson bivector on hypercomplex manifold. We extend the characterization to the twistor space. After considering the flat case in detail, we show that the twistor space of hyperkaehler manifold admits a holomorphic Poisson structure. We briefly mention the relation to quaternionic and hypercomplex deformations on tori and K3 surfaces
To give an almost quaternionic structure on a 4n-manifold $M$ is equivalent to give its bundle of twistors $Z(Q)\longrightarrow M$. When $Q$ is invariant under a torsion free connection, $Z(Q) $ can be provided with an almost complex structure $ \mathbb J $. In the case $ n = 1 $ Atiyah, Hitchin and Singer have related the integrability of $ \mathbb J $ to the geometry of $ (M, Q) $. For $ n> 1 $ Salamon showed that the almost complex structure $ \mathbb J $ on $ Z (Q) $ is always integrable. The purpose of this article is to extend these results to the generalized complex geometry. We begin b…
We study the moduli space of quaternionic Kaehler structures on a compact manifold of dimension 4n (n>2) from a point of view of Riemannian geometry, not twistor theory. Then we obtain a rigidity theorem for quaternionic Kaehler structures of nonzero scalar curvature by observing the moduli space.
In the present paper we introduce the class of slice-polynomial functions: slice regular functions {defined over the quaternions, outside the real axis,} whose restriction to any complex half-plane is a polynomial. These functions naturally emerge in the twistor interpretation of slice regularity introduced in \cite{gensalsto} and developed in \cite{AAtwistor}. To any slice-polynomial function $P$ we associate its {\em companion} $P^\vee$ and its {\em extension} to the real axis $P_\mathbb{R}$, that are quaternionic functions naturally related to $P$. Then, using the theory of twistor spaces, …
Almost para-quaternionic structures on smooth manifolds of dimension $2n$ are equivalent to almost Grassmannian structures of type $(2,n)$. We remind the equivalence and exhibit some interrelations between subjects that were previously studied independently from the para-quaternionic and the Grassmannian point of view. In particular, we relate the respective normalization conditions, distinguished curves and twistor constructions.
We extend the twistor methods developed in our earlier work on linear deformations of hyperkahler manifolds [arXiv:0806.4620] to the case of quaternionic-Kahler manifolds. Via Swann's construction, deformations of a 4d-dimensional quaternionic-Kahler manifold $M$ are in one-to-one correspondence with deformations of its $4d+4$-dimensional hyperkahler cone $S$. The latter can be encoded in variations of the complex symplectomorphisms which relate different locally flat patches of the twistor space $Z_S$, with a suitable homogeneity condition that ensures that the hyperkahler cone property is pr…
Four-dimensional quaternion-Kahler metrics, or equivalently self-dual Einstein spaces M, are known to be encoded locally into one real function h subject to Przanowski's Heavenly equation. We elucidate the relation between this description and the usual twistor description for quaternion-Kahler spaces. In particular, we show that the same space M can be described by infinitely many different solutions h, associated to different complex (local) submanifolds on the twistor space, and therefore to different (local) integrable complex structures on M. We also study quaternion-Kahler deformations o…
We give an overview of some recent results in hypersymplectic and para-quaternionic Kahler geometry, and introduce the notion of split three-Sasakian manifold. In particular, we discuss the twistor spaces and Swann bundles of para-quaternionic Kahler manifolds. These are used to classify examples with a fully homogeneous action of a semi-simple Lie group, and to construct distinct para-quaternionic Kahler metrics from indefinite real analytic conformal manifolds. We also indicate how the theory of toric varieties gives rise to constructions of hypersymplectic manifolds.
Quaternion-Kaehler four-manifolds, or equivalently anti-self-dual Einstein manifolds, are locally determined by one scalar function subject to Przanowski's equation. Using twistorial methods we construct a Lax Pair for Przanowski's equation, confirming its integrability. The Lee form of a compatible local complex structure, which one can always find, gives rise to a conformally invariant differential operator acting on sections of a line bundle. Special cases of the associated generalised Laplace operator are the conformal Laplacian and the linearised Przanowski operator. We provide recursion …
We compute the hessian of the natural Hermitian form successively on the Calabi family of a hyperkähler manifold, on the twistor space of a 4-dimensional anti-self-dual Riemannian manifold and on the twistor space of a quaternionic Kähler manifold. We show a strong convexity property of the cycle space of twistor lines on the Calabi family of a hyperkähler manifold. We also prove convexity properties of the 1-cycle space of the twistor space of a 4-dimensional anti-self-dual Einstein manifold of non-positive scalar curvature and of the 1-cycle space of the twistor space of a quaternionic Kähle…
We provide a general criteria for the integrability of the almost para-quaternionic structure of an almost para-quaternionic manifold (M,P) of dimension bigger or equal to eight, in terms of the integrability of two or three sections of the defining rank three vector bundle P. We relate it with the integrability of the canonical almost complex structure of the twistor space and to the integrability of the canonical almost para-complex structure of the reflector space of (M,P). We show that (M, P) has plenty of locally defined, compatible, complex and para-complex structures, provided that P is…
Gray & Hervella gave a classification of almost Hermitian structures (g,I) into 16 classes. We systematically study the interaction between these classes when one has an almost hyper-Hermitian structure (g,I,J,K). In general dimension we find at most 167 different almost hyper-Hermitian structures. In particular, we obtain a number of relations that give hyperKäher or locally conformal hyperKähler structures, thus generalising a result of Hitchin. We also study the types of almost quaternion-Hermitian geometries that arise and tabulate the results.
We prove that given a pseudo-Riemannian conformal structure whose conformal holonomy representation fixes a totally lightlike subspace of arbitrary dimension, there is, wrt. a local metric in the conformal class defined off a singular set, a parallel, totally lightlike distribution on the tangent bundle which contains the image of the Ricci-tensor. This generalizes results obtained for invariant lightlike lines and planes and closes a gap in the understanding of the geometric meaning of reducibly acting conformal holonomy groups. We show how this result naturally applies to the classification …
We review the theory of quaternionic Kahler and hyperkahler structures. Then we consider the tangent bundle of a Riemannian manifold M with a metric connection D (with torsion) and with its well estabilished canonical complex structure. With an extra almost Hermitian structure on M it is possible to find a quaternionic Hermitian structure on TM, which is quaternionic Kahler if, and only if, D is flat and torsion free. We also review the symplectic nature of TM. Finally a proper S^3-bundle of complex structures is introduced, expanding to TM the well known twistor bundle of M.
A hypercomplex structure on a differentiable manifold consists of three integrable almost complex structures that satisfy quaternionic relations. If, in addition, there exists a metric on the manifold which is Hermitian with respect to the three structures, and such that the corresponding Hermitian forms are closed, the manifold is said to be hyperkaehler. In the paper "Non-Hermitian Yang-Mills connections", Kaledin and Verbitsky proved that the twistor space of a hyperkaehler manifold admits a balanced metric; these were first studied in the article "On the existence of special metrics in com…
We consider manifolds equipped with a foliation $\cal F$ of codimension $4q$, and an almost quaternionic structure $Q$ on the transversal bundle of ${\cal F}$. After discussing conditions of projectability and integrability of $Q$, we study the transversal twistor space $Z{\cal F}$ which, by definition, consists of the $Q$-compatible almost complex structures. We show that $Z{\cal F}$ can be endowed with a lifted foliation ${\hat {\cal F}}$ and two natural almost complex structures $J_1$, $J_2$ on the transversal bundle of $\hat{\cal F}$. We establish the conditions which ensure the projectabi…
It is very well known that Hopf real hypersurfaces in the complex projective space can be locally characterized as tubes over complex submanifolds. This also holds true for some, but not all, Hopf real hypersurfaces in the complex hyperbolic space. The main goal of this paper is to show, in a unified way, how to construct Hopf real hypersurfaces in the complex hyperbolic space from a horizontal submanifold in one of the three twistor spaces of the indefinite complex $2$-plane Grassmannian with respect to the natural para-quaternionic Kähler structure. We also identify these twistor spaces with…
Motivated by the analogies between the projective and the almost quaternionic geometries, we study the generalized planar curves and mappings. We follow, recover, and extend the classical approach as developed by Mikes and Sinyukov. Then we exploit the impact of the general results in the almost quaternionic geometry. In particular we show, that the natural class of H--planar curves coincides with the class of all geodesics of the so called Weyl connections and preserving this class turns out to be the necessary and sufficient condition on diffeomorphisms to become morphisms of almost quaterni…
Generic distributions on 5- and 6-manifolds give rise to conformal structures that were discovered by P. Nurowski resp. R. Bryant. We describe both as Fefferman-type constructions and show that for orientable distributions one obtains conformal spin structures. The resulting conformal spin geometries are then characterized by their conformal holonomy and equivalently by the existence of a twistor spinor which satisfies a genericity condition. Moreover, we show that given such a twistor spinor we can decompose a conformal Killing field of the structure. We obtain explicit formulas relating conf…
We consider the unique Hermitian connection with totally skew-symmetric torsion on a Hermitian manifold. We prove that if the torsion is parallel and the holonomy is Sp(n)U(1), considered as a subgroup of U(2n) x U(1), then the manifold is locally isomorphic to the twistor space of a quaternionic Kaehler manifold with positive scalar curvature. If the manifold is complete, then it is globally isomorphic to such a twistor space.
In this expository paper we review some twistor techniques and recall the problem of finding compact differentiable manifolds that can carry both Kähler and non-Kähler complex structures. Such examples were constructed independently by M. Atiyah, A. Blanchard and E. Calabi in the $1950$'s. In the $1980$'s V. Tsanov gave an example of a simply connected manifold that admits both Kähler and non-Kähler complex structures - the twistor space of a $K3$ surface. Here we show that the quaternion twistor space of a hyperkähler manifold has the same property.
For a semisimple Lie group $G$ with parabolic subgroups $Q\subset P\subset G$, we associate to a parabolic geometry of type $(G,P)$ on a smooth manifold $N$ the correspondence space $\Cal CN$, which is the total space of a fiber bundle over $N$ with fiber a generalized flag manifold, and construct a canonical parabolic geometry of type $(G,Q)$ on $\Cal CN$. Conversely, for a parabolic geometry of type $(G,Q)$ on a smooth manifold $M$, we construct a distribution corresponding to $P$, and find the exact conditions for its integrability. If these conditions are satisfied, then we define the twis…
We present a uniform framework generalising and extending the classical theories of projective differential geometry, c-projective geometry, and almost quaternionic geometry. Such geometries, which we call \emph{projective parabolic geometries}, are abelian parabolic geometries whose flat model is an R-space $G\cdot\mathfrak{p}$ in the infinitesimal isotropy representation $\mathbb{W}$ of a larger self-dual symmetric R-space $H\cdot\mathfrak{q}$. We also give a classification of projective parabolic geometries with $H\cdot\mathfrak{q}$ irreducible which, in addition to the aforementioned class…
In this paper, we construct tools from the holomorphic twistor spaces that we introduced in \cite{Gindi1} to derive results about the complex geometries of their base manifolds. In particular, we develop a new approach to studying generalized Kahler manifolds that leads to insights into their real and holomorphic Poisson structures.
This is a survey on quaternion Hermitian Weyl (locally conformally quaternion Kähler) and hyperhermitian Weyl (locally conformally hyperkähler) manifolds. These geometries appear by requesting the compatibility of some quaternion Hermitian or hyperhermitian structure with a Weyl structure. The motivation for such a study is two-fold: it comes from the constantly growing interest in Weyl (and Einstein-Weyl) geometry and, on the other hand, from the necessity of understanding the existing classes of quaternion Hermitian manifolds.
We extend T. Y. Thomas's approach to the projective structures, over the complex analytic category, by involving the $ρ$-connections. This way, a better control of the projective flatness is obtained and, consequently, we have, for example, the following application: if the twistor space of a quaternionic manifold $P$ is endowed with a complex projective structure then $P$ can be locally identified, through quaternionic diffeomorphisms, with the quaternionic projective space.
Superconformal geometries in spacetime dimensions $D=3,4,{5}$ and $6$ are discussed in terms of local supertwistor bundles over standard superspace. These natually admit superconformal connections as matrix-valued one-forms. In order to make contact with the standard superspace formalism it is shown that one can always choose gauges in which the scale parts of the connection and curvature vanish, in which case the conformal and $S$-supersymmetry transformations become subsumed into super-Weyl transformations. The number of component fields can be reduced to those of the minimal off-shell confo…
We find that the target space of two-dimensional (4,0) supersymmetric sigma models with torsion coupled to (4,0) supergravity is a QKT manifold, that is, a quaternionic Kähler manifold with torsion. We give four examples of geodesically complete QKT manifolds one of which is a generalisation of the LeBrun geometry. We then construct the twistor space associated with a QKT manifold and show that under certain conditions it is a Kähler manifold with a complex contact structure. We also show that, for every 4k-dimensional QKT manifold, there is an associated 4(k+1)-dimensional hyper-Kähler one.
This is an expanded version of a series of lectures delivered at the 25th Winter School ``Geometry and Physics'' in Srni. After a short introduction to Cartan geometries and parabolic geometries, we give a detailed description of the equivalence between parabolic geometries and underlying geometric structures. The second part of the paper is devoted to constructions which relate parabolic geometries of different type. First we discuss the construction of correspondence spaces and twistor spaces, which is related to nested parabolic subgroups in the same semisimple Lie group. An example related…
Contact path geometries are curved geometric structures on a contact manifold comprising smooth families of paths modeled on the family of all isotropic lines in the projectivization of a symplectic vector space. Locally such a structure is equivalent to the graphs in the space of independent and depedent variables of the family of solutions of a system of an odd number of second order ODE's subject to a single maximally non-integrable constraint. A subclass of contact path geometries is distinguished by the vanishing of an invariant contact torsion. For this subclass the equivalence problem i…
We study the intrinsic torsion of almost quaternion-Hermitian manifolds via the exterior algebra. In particular, we show how it is determined by particular three-forms formed from simple combinations of the exterior derivatives of the local Kaehler forms. This gives a practical method to compute the intrinsic torsion and is applied in a number of examples. In addition we find simple characterisations of HKT and QKT geometries entirely in the exterior algebra and compute how the intrinsic torsion changes under a twist construction.
We show that infinitesimal automorphisms and infinitesimal deformations of parabolic geometries can be nicely described in terms of the twisted de-Rham sequence associated to a certain linear connection on the adjoint tractor bundle. For regular normal geometries, this description can be related to the underlying geometric structure using the machinery of BGG sequences. In the locally flat case, this leads to a deformation complex, which generalizes the is well know complex for locally conformally flat manifolds. Recently, a theory of subcomplexes in BGG sequences has been developed. This appl…
Let $S$ be a smooth rational curve on a complex manifold $M$. It is called ample if its normal bundle is positive. We assume that $M$ is covered by smooth holomorphic deformations of $S$. The basic example of such a manifold is a twistor space of a hyperkahler or a 4-dimensional anti-selfdual Riemannian manifold $X$ (not necessarily compact). We prove "a holography principle" for such a manifold: any meromorphic function defined in a neighbourhood $U$ of $S$ can be extended to $M$, and any section of a holomorphic line bundle can be extended from $U$ to $M$. This is used to define the notion o…
This is the first comprehensive introduction to the authors' recent attempts toward a better understanding of the global concepts behind spinor representations of surfaces in 3-space. The important new aspect is a quaternionic-valued function theory, whose "meromorphic functions" are conformal maps into quaternions, which extends the classical complex function theory on Riemann surfaces. The first results along these lines were presented at the ICM 98 in Berlin. An important new invariant of the quaternionic holomorphic theory is the Willmore energy. For quaternionic holomorphic curves in the …