Let $M$, $N$ be finite-dimensional manifolds with $M$ compact. This paper looks at the Riemnannian geometry on the space $C^\infty(M,N)$ of smooth maps equipped with the $L^2$-Riemannian metric. This metric was used by Ebin and Marsden in the proof of the well-posedness of the incompressible Euler equation and is related to the Wasserstein distance in optimal transport. The paper gives an introduction to the challenges of infinite-dimensional Riemannian geometry and shows how one use general connections to relate the geometry of $N$ and the geometry of $C^\infty(M,N)$.
We consider the following problem: on any given complete Riemannian manifold $(M,g)$, among all curves which have fixed length as well as fixed end-points and tangents at the end-points, minimise the $L^\infty$ norm of the curvature. We show that the solutions of this problem, as well as a wider class of curves, must satisfy a second order ODE system. From this system we obtain some geometric information about the behaviour of the curves.
We consider biharmonic maps $ϕ:(M,g)\rightarrow (N,h)$ from a complete Riemannian manifold into a Riemannian manifold with non-positive sectional curvature. Assume that $α$ satisfies $1<α<\infty$. If for such an $α$, $\int_M|τ(ϕ)|^αdv_g<\infty$ and $\int_M|dϕ|^2dv_g<\infty,$ where $τ(ϕ)$ is the tension field of $ϕ$, then we show that $ϕ$ is harmonic. For a biharmonic submanifold, we obtain that the above assumption $\int_M|dϕ|^2dv_g<\infty$ is not necessary. These results give affirmative partial answers to the global version of generalized Chen's conjecture.
Let $M^n$ be a complete, non-compact and $C^\infty$-smooth Riemannian manifold with nonnegative sectional curvature. Suppose $\Cal S$ is a soul of $M^n$. Then any distance non-increasing retraction $Ψ: M^n \to \Cal S$ must give rise to a $C^\infty$-smooth Riemannian submersion.
Riemannian cubics are critical points for the $L^2$ norm of acceleration of curves in Riemannian manifolds $M$. In the present paper the $L^\infty$ norm replaces the $L^2$ norm, and a less direct argument is used to derive necessary conditions analogous to those for Riemannian cubics. The necessary conditions are examined when $M$ is a sphere or a bi-invariant Lie group.
The present paper is devoted to the problem of (local) geodesic equivalence of Riemannian metrics and sub-Riemannian metrics on generic corank 1 distributions. Using Pontryagin Maximum Principle, we treat Riemannian and sub-Riemannian cases in an unified way and obtain some algebraic necessary conditions for the geodesic equivalence of (sub-)Riemannian metrics. In this way first we obtain a new elementary proof of classical Levi-Civita's Theorem about the classification of all Riemannian geodesically equivalent metrics in a neighborhood of so-called regular (stable) point w.r.t. these metrics.…
We prove that the L^2 Riemannian metric on the manifold of all smooth Riemannian metrics on a fixed closed, finite-dimensional manifold induces a metric space structure. As the L^2 metric is a weak Riemannian metric, this fact does not follow from general results. In addition, we prove several results on the exponential mapping and distance function of a weak Riemannian metric on a Hilbert/Frechet manifold. The statements are analogous to, but weaker than, what is known in the case of a Riemannian metric on a finite-dimensional manifold or a strong Riemannian metric on a Hilbert manifold.
In this short note we study nonexistence result of biharmonic maps from a complete Riemannian manifold into a Riemannian manifold with nonpositive sectional curvature. Assume that $ϕ:(M,g)\to (N, h)$ is a biharmonic map, where $(M, g)$ is a complete Riemannian manifold and $(N,h)$ a Riemannian manifold with nonpositive sectional curvature, we will prove that $ϕ$ is a harmonic map if one of the following conditions holds: (i) $|dϕ|$ is bounded in $L^q(M)$ and $ \int_M|τ(ϕ)|^pdv_g<\infty, $ for some $1\leq q\leq\infty$, $1< p<\infty$; or (ii) $Vol(M)=\infty$ and $ \int_M|τ(ϕ)|^pdv_g<\infty, $ fo…
$\infty$-Harmonic maps are a generalization of $\infty$-harmonic functions. They can be viewed as the limiting cases of p-harmonic maps as p goes to infinity. In this paper, we give complete classifications of linear and quadratic $\infty$-harmonic maps from and into a sphere, quadratic $\infty$-harmonic maps between Euclidean spaces. We describe all linear and quadratic $\infty$-harmonic maps between Nil and Euclidean spaces, between Sol and Euclidean spaces. We also study holomorphic $\infty$-harmonic maps between complex Euclidean spaces.
To determine the Lie groups that admit a flat (eventually complete) left invariant semi-Riemannian metric is an open and difficult problem. The main aim of this paper is the study of the flatness of left invariant semi Riemannian metrics on quadratic Lie groups i.e. Lie groups endowed with a bi-invariant semi Riemannian metric. We give a useful necessary and sufficient condition that guaranties the flatness of a left invariant semi Riemannian metric defined on a quadratic Lie group. All these semi Riemannian metrics are complete. We show that there are no Riemannian or Lorentzian flat left inv…
Consider the sum of the first $N$ eigenspaces for the Laplacian on a Riemannian manifold. A basis for this space determines a map to Euclidean space and for $N$ sufficiently large the map is an embedding. In analogy with a fruitful idea of Kähler geometry, we define (Riemannian) Bergman metrics of degree $N$ to be those metrics induced by such embeddings. Our main result is to identify a natural sequence of Bergman metrics approximating any given Riemannian metric. In particular we have constructed finite dimensional symmetric space approximations to the space of all Riemannian metrics. Moreov…
We prove the semi-Riemannian bumpy metric theorem using equivariant variational genericity. The theorem states that, on a given compact manifold $M$, the set of semi-Riemannian metrics that admit only nondegenerate closed geodesics is generic relatively to the $C^k$-topology, $k=2,...,\infty$, in the set of metrics of a given index on $M$. A higher order genericity Riemannian result of Klingenberg and Takens is extended to semi-Riemannian geometry.
In this paper, we formulate a procedure to obtain a generalization of Milnor frames for left-invariant pseudo-Riemannian metrics on a given Lie group. This procedure is an analogue of the recent studies on left-invariant Riemannian metrics, and is based on the moduli space of left-invariant pseudo-Riemannian metrics. As one of applications, we show that any left-invariant pseudo-Riemannian metrics of arbitrary signature on the Lie groups of real hyperbolic spaces have constant sectional curvatures.
We consider a $3$-dimensional differentiable manifold with two circulant structures -- a Riemannian metric and an additional structure, whose third power is the identity. The structure is compatible with the metric such that an isometry is induced in any tangent space of the manifold. Further, we consider an associated metric with the Riemannian metric, which is necessary indefinite. We find equations of a sphere and of a circle, which are given in terms of the associated metric, with respect to the Riemannian metric.
This work proves certain general orbifold compactness results for spaces of Riemannian metrics, generalizing earlier results along these lines for Einstein metrics or metrics with bounded Ricci curvature. This is then applied to prove such compactness for spaces of Bach-flat (for example half-conformally flat) metrics on 4-manifolds, and related results for metrics which are critical points of other natural Riemannian functionals on the space of metrics.
We consider geometries on the space of Riemannian metrics conformally equivalent to the widely studied Ebin L^2 metric. Among these we characterize a distinguished metric that can be regarded as a generalization of Calabi's metric on the space of Kähler metrics to the space of Riemannian metrics, and we study its geometry in detail. Unlike the Ebin metric, the geodesic equation involves non-local terms, and we solve it explicitly by using a constant of the motion. We then determine its completion, which gives the first example of a metric on the space of Riemannian metrics whose completion is …
We employ Riemannian jets which are adapted to the Riemannian geometry to obtain the existence-uniqueness of viscosity solutions to the $\infty(x)$-Laplace equation in Riemannian vector fields. Due to the differences between Euclidean jets and Riemannian jets, the Euclidean method of proof is not valid in this environment.
In this paper, we show that, for a biharmonic hypersurface $(M,g)$ of a Riemannian manifold $(N,h)$ of non-positive Ricci curvature, if $\int_M|H|^2 v_g<\infty$, where $H$ is the mean curvature of $(M,g)$ in $(N,h)$, then $(M,g)$ is minimal in $(N,h)$. Thus, for a counter example $(M,g)$ in the case of hypersurfaces to the generalized Chen's conjecture (cf. Sect.1), it holds that $\int_M|H|^2 v_g=\infty$.
Notions of compatible and almost compatible pseudo-Riemannian metrics, which are motivated by the theory of compatible (local and nonlocal) Poisson structures of hydrodynamic type and generalize the notion of flat pencil of metrics, are introduced and studied.
For a given smooth manifold, we consider the moduli space of Riemannian metrics up to isometry and scaling. One can define a preorder on the moduli space by the size of isometry groups. We call a Riemannian metric that attains a maximal element with respect to the preorder a maximal metric. Maximal metrics give nice examples of self-similar solutions for various metric evolution equations such as the Ricci flow. In this paper, we construct many examples of maximal metrics on Euclidean spaces.
We give a concise proof that large classes of optimal (constant curvature or Einstein) pseudo-Riemannian metrics are maximally symmetric within their conformal class.
This is the author's Ph.D. thesis, submitted to the University of Leipzig. It deals with the $L^2$ Riemannian metric on the manifold of all smooth Riemannian metrics on a fixed closed, finite-dimensional manifold. The main body of the thesis is a description of the completion manifold of metrics with respect to the $L^2$ metric. The primary motivation for studying this problem comes from Teichmueller theory, where similar considerations lead to a completion of the well-known Weil-Petersson metric. We give an application of the main theorem to the completions of Teichmueller space with respect …
Let $(M_1,g_1)$ and $(M_2,g_2)$ be two $C^\infty$--differentiable connected, complete Riemannian manifolds, $k:M_1\to\mathbb R$ a $C^\infty$--differentiable function, having $0<k_0<k(x)\leq K_0$, for any $x\in M_1$ and $g:=g_1-kg_2$ the semi Riemannian metric on the product manifold $M:=M_1\times M_2$. We associate to $g$ a suitable family of Riemannian metrics $G_r+g_2$, with $r>-K_0^{-1}$, on $M$ and we call Riemannian geodesics of $g$ the geodesics of $g$ which are geodesics of a metric of the previous family, via a suitable reparametrization. Among the properties of these geodesics, we quo…
Necessary and sufficient conditions for a Riemannian product to be conformally equivalent to an Einstein manifold are given. Such spaces which are complete are characterized.
We discuss Lie-Tresse theorem for the pseudogroup of diffeomorphisms acting on the space of (pseudo-)Riemannian metrics, and relate this to existence of Killing vector fields. Then we discuss the impact of symmetry in the general case.
It is proved that the isometry classes of pointed connected complete Riemannian $n$-manifolds form a Polish space, $\mathcal{M}_*^\infty(n)$, with the topology described by the $C^\infty$ convergence of manifolds. This space has a canonical partition into sets defined by varying the distinguished point into each manifold. The locally non-periodic manifolds define an open dense subspace $\mathcal{M}_{*,\text{lnp}}^\infty(n)\subset\mathcal{M}_*^\infty(n)$, which becomes a $C^\infty$ foliated space with the restriction of the canonical partition. Its leaves without holonomy form the subspace $\ma…
The aim of this paper is the study of the geodesic distance in operator groups with several Riemannian metrics. More precisely we study the geodesic distance in self-adjoint operator groups with the left invariant Riemannian metric induced by the infinite trace and extend known results about the completeness of some classical Banach-Lie groups to this general class.
We study the existence of solutions of the non-linear differential equations on the compact Riemannian manifolds $(M^n,g), n\geq 2$, Δ_p u + a(x)u^{p-1} = λf(u,x), (E2) where $Δ_p$ is the $p-$laplacian, with $1<p<n$. The equation (E2) generalizes a equation considered by Aubin, where he has considered, a compact Riemannian manifold $(M,g)$, the differential equation ($p=2$) Δu + a(x)u = λf(u,x), (E1) where $a(x)$ is a $C^{\infty}$ function defined on $M$ and $f(u,x)$ is a $C^{\infty}$ function defined on $\mathbb{R}\times M$. We show that the equation (E2) has solution $(λ,u)$, where $λ\in \ma…
Let M be a smooth compact manifold without boundary. We consider two smooth Sub-Semi-Riemannian metrics on M. Under suitable conditions, we show that they are almost conformally isometric in an Lp sense. Assume also that M carries a Riemannian metric with parallel Ricci curvature. Then an equation of Ricci type, is in some sense solvable, without assuming any closeness near a special metric.
We consider the following generalisation of a well-known problem in Riemannian geometry: When is a smooth real-valued function s on a given compact n-dimensional manifold M (with or without boundary) the scalar curvature of some smooth pseudo-Riemannian metric of index q on M? We prove that this is the case for every s if 2<q<n-2, provided M admits a metric of index q at all. In fact, if 2<q<n-2, then each connected component of the space of pseudo-Riemannian metrics of index q on M contains a metric with scalar curvature s. We prove several theorems for pseudo-Riemannian metrics of index 1 or…
In this paper, using the structures of cone and bicone fields on vector bundles, the author introduces a ILB (inverse limit of Banach)- manifold structure on $\mathcal M$ the space of Riemannian metrics on a noncompact manifold $M$. In the last section, it is proven that, this way, on the open submanifold $\mathcal{M}_{finite}$ of finite volume metrics, the canonical Riemannian metric is defined.
In this paper, we systemally study the long time behavior of the curve shortening flow in a closed or non-compact complete locally Riemannian symmetric manifold. Assume that we have a global flow. Then we can exhibit a a limit for the global behavior of the flow. In particular, we show the following results. 1). Let $\mathbf{M}$ be a compact locally symmetric space. If the curve shortening flow exists for infinite time, and $$ \lim_{t\to\infty}L(γ_{t})>0, $$ then for every $n>0$, $$ \lim_{t\to \infty}\sup(|\frac{D^{n}T}{\partial s^{n}}|)=0. $$ In particular, the limiting curve exists and is a …
The authors find geodesics, shortest arcs, diameter, cut locus, and conjugate sets for left-invariant sub-Riemannian metric on the Lie group SO(3), under condition that the metric is right-invariant relative to the Lie subgroup $SO(2)\subset SO(3)$.
It is understood now that all projective (and conformal) invariants of Riemannian metrics can be found by a transparent construction based on representation theory. So this article with a partial and quite cumbersome construction of projective invariants become obsolete.
We investigate regularization of riemannian metrics by mollification. Assuming both-sided bounds on the Ricci tensor and a lower injectivity radius bound we obtain a uniform estimate on the change of the sectional curvature. Actually, our result holds for any metric with a uniform bound on the $W^{2,p}$-harmonic radius.
We analyze sub-Riemannian and lightlike metrics from the point of view of their rigidity as geometric structures. Following Cartan's and Gromov's formal definitions, they are never rigid, yet, in generic cases, they naturally give rise to rigid geometric structures!?
In the present paper we show that the geodesic flows of a sub-Riemannian metric and that of a Riemannian extension commute if and only if the extended metric is parallel with respect to a certain connection. This helps us to describe the geodesic flow of sub-Riemannian metrics on totally geodesic Riemannian submersions. As a consequence we can characterize sub-Riemannian geodesics as the horizontal lifts of projections of Riemannian geodesics.
Length spectra for Riemannian metrics are well studied, while sub-Riemannian length spectra have been largely unexplored. Here we give the length spectrum for a canonical sub-Riemannian structure attached to any compact Lie group by restricting its Killing form to the sum of the root spaces. Surprisingly, the shortest loops are the same in both the Riemannian and sub-Riemannian cases. We provide specific calculations for SU(2) and SU(3).
In this paper we study warped product Finsler metrics and show that the notion of isotropic $E$-curvature and isotropic $S$-curvature are equivalent for this class of metrics.
We construct in an explicit algebraic form a family of complete noncompact Ricci-flat metrics which generalize Calabi metrics in real dimension $4(n+1)$ and with holonomy $SU(2(n+1))$.
In this paper, we first prove that homogeneous spaces $E_6/A_4$ and $E_6/A_1$ admit Einstein metrics which are $Ad(T\times A_1\times A_4)$-invariant, and then show that they admit Non-Riemannian Einstein-Randers metrics.
In this paper, we present the classification of all possible signatures of the Ricci curvature of left-invariant Riemannian metrics on 4-dimensional Lie groups and discuss some related questions.
For all left-invariant Riemannian metrics on three-dimensional unimodular Lie groups, there exist particular left-invariant orthonormal frames, so-called Milnor frames. In this paper, for any left-invariant Riemannian metrics on any Lie groups, we give a procedure to obtain an analogous of Milnor frames, in the sense that the bracket relations among them can be written with relatively smaller number of parameters. Our procedure is based on the moduli space of left-invariant Riemannian metrics. Some explicit examples of such frames and applications will also be given.
Under the assumption of the uniform local Sobolev inequality, it is proved that Riemannian metrics with an absolute Ricci curvature bound and a small Riemannian curvature integral bound can be smoothed to having a sectional curvature bound. This partly extends previous a priori estimates of Ye Li (J. Geom. Anal. 17 (2007) 495-511; Advances in Mathematics 223 (2010) 1924-1957).
In the presented paper left-invariant pseudo-Riemannian metrics on four-dimensional Lie groups with zero Schouten-Weyl tensor are investigated. The complete classification of these metric Lie groups is obtained in terms of the structure constants of corresponding Lie algebras.
We show that $PQ^ε$-projectivity of two Riemannian metrics introduced in \cite{Top2003} implies affine equivalence of the metrics unless $ε\in\{0,-1,-3,-5,-7,...\}$. Moreover, we show that for $ε=0$, $PQ^ε$-projectivity implies projective equivalence.
We study harmonic sections of a Riemannian vector bundle whose total space is equipped with a 2-parameter family of metrics which includes both the Sasaki and Cheeger-Gromoll metrics. This enables the theory of harmonic unit sections to be extended to bundles with non-zero Euler class.
Assuming that there exists a translating soliton $u_\infty$ with speed $C$ in a domain $Ω$ and with prescribed contact angle on $\partialΩ$, we prove that a graphical solution to the mean curvature flow with the same prescribed contact angle converges to $u_\infty +Ct$ as $t\to\infty$. We also generalize the recent existence result of Gao, Ma, Wang and Weng to non-Euclidean settings under suitable bounds on convexity of $Ω$ and Ricci curvature in $Ω$.
The authors found geodesics, shortest arcs, cut loci, and conjugate sets for left-invariant sub-Riemannian matric on the Lie group $SL(2)$, which is right-invariant relative to the Lie subgroup $SO(2)\subset SL(2)$ (in other words, for invariant sub-Riemannian metric on weakly symmetric space $(SL(2)\times SO(2))/SO(2)$).
Let $FM,\mathcal{M}_M$ be the bundles of linear frames and Riemannian metrics of a manifold $M$, respectively. The existence of a unique $\mathrm{Diff}M$-invariant connection form on $J^1\mathcal{M}_M\times_MFM\to J^1\mathcal{M}_M$, which is Riemannian with respect to the universal metric on $J^1\mathcal{M}_M\times_MTM$, is proved. Aplications to the construction of universal Pontryagin and Euler forms, are given.
We consider the results of combining two approaches developed for the design of Riemannian metrics on curves and surfaces, namely parametrization-invariant metrics of the Sobolev type on spaces of immersions, and metrics derived through Riemannian submersions from right-invariant Sobolev metrics on groups of diffeomorphisms (the latter leading to the "large deformation diffeomorphic metric mapping" framework). We show that this quite simple approach inherits the advantages of both methods, both on the theoretical and experimental levels, and provide additional flexibility and modeling power, e…
In this paper, for a compact manifold $M$ with non-empty boundary, we give a Koiso-type decomposition theorem, as well as an Ebin-type slice theorem, for the space of all Riemannian metrics on $M$ endowed with a fixed conformal class on the boundary. As a corollary, we give a characterization of relative Einstein metrics.
Let $(M,g)$ be a Riemannian manifold. When $M$ is compact and the tangent bundle $TM$ is equipped with the Sasaki metric $g^s$, the only vector fields which define harmonic maps from $(M,g)$ to $(TM,g^s)$, are the parallel ones. The Sasaki metric, and other well known Riemannian metrics on $TM$, are particular examples of $g$-natural metrics. We equip $TM$ with an arbitrary Riemannian $g$-natural metric $G$, and investigate the harmonicity of a vector field $V$ of $M$, thought as a map from $(M,g)$ to $(TM,G)$. We then apply this study to the Reeb vector field and, in particular, to Hopf vecto…
We give a description of the completion of the manifold of all smooth Riemannian metrics on a fixed smooth, closed, finite-dimensional, orientable manifold with respect to a natural metric called the $L^2$ metric. The primary motivation for studying this problem comes from Teichmueller theory, where similar considerations lead to a completion of the well-known Weil-Petersson metric. We give an application of the main theorem to the completions of Teichmueller space with respect to a class of metrics that generalize the Weil-Petersson metric.
