A linear connection on a Finsler manifold is called compatible to the metric if its parallel transports preserve the Finslerian length of tangent vectors. Generalized Berwald manifolds are Finsler manifolds equipped with a compatible linear connection. Since the compatibility to the Finslerian metric does not imply the unicity of the linear connection in general, the first step of checking the existence of compatible linear connections on a Finsler manifold is to choose the best one to look for. A reasonable choice is introduced in \cite{V14} called the extremal compatible linear connection, which has torsion of minimal norm at each point.
Randers metrics are special Finsler metrics that can be written as the sum of a Riemannian metric and a 1-form (they are "translates" of Riemannian metrics). In this paper, we investigate the compatibility equations for a linear connection to a Randers metric. Since a compatible linear connection is uniquely determined by its torsion, we transform the compatibility equations by taking the torsion components as variables. We determine when these equations have solutions, i.e. when the Randers space becomes a generalized Berwald space admitting a compatible linear connection. Describing all of them, we can select the extremal connection with the norm minimizing property. As a consequence, we obtain the characterization theorem in \cite{Vin1}: a Randers space is a non-Riemannian generalized Berwald space if and only if the norm of the perturbating term with respect to the Riemannian part of the metric is a positive constant.
We define systems of pre-extremals for the energy functional of regular rheonomic Lagrange manifolds and show how they induce well-defined Hamilton orthogonal nets. Such nets have applications in the modelling of e.g. wildfire spread under time- and space-dependent conditions. The time function inherited from such a Hamilton net induces in turn a time-independent Finsler metric - we call it the associated frozen metric. It is simply obtained by inserting the time function from the net into the given Lagrangean. The energy pre-extremals then become ordinary Finsler geodesics of the frozen metri…
In this paper we argue that when gauge invariance is taken into consideration, there is no consistent geometric framework of Finsler class that can accommodate Randers type spaces. In this context, an alternative non-Finslerian framework for Randers spacetimes compatible with gauge invariance is introduced.
Given a path of almost-Kähler metrics compatible with a fixed symplectic form on a compact 4-manifold such that at time zero the almost-Kähler metric is an extremal Kähler one, we prove, for a short time and under a certain hypothesis, the existence of a smooth family of extremal almost-Kähler metrics compatible with the same symplectic form, such that at each time the induced almost-complex structure is diffeomorphic to the one induced by the path.
Generalized Berwald manifolds are Finsler manifolds admitting linear connections such that the parallel transports preserve the Finslerian length of tangent vectors (compatibi\-li\-ty condition). By the fundamental result of the theory \cite{V5} such a linear connection must be metrical with respect to the averaged Riemannian metric given by integration of the Riemann-Finsler metric on the indicatrix hypersurfaces. Therefore the linear connection (preserving the Finslerian length of tangent vectors) is uniquely determined by its torsion. If the torsion is zero then we have a classical Berwald …
We establish an equivalence between conformally Einstein--Maxwell Kahler 4-manifolds (recently studied in many works) and extremal Kahler 4-manifolds (in the sense of Calabi) with nowhere vanishing scalar curvature. The corresponding pairs of Kahler metrics arise as transversal Kahler structures of Sasaki metrics compatible with the same CR structure and having commuting Sasaki--Reeb vector fields. This correspondence extends to higher dimensions using the notion of a weighted extremal Kahler metric, illuminating and uniting several explicit constructions in Kahler and Sasaki geometry. It also…
A linear connection on a Finsler manifold is called compatible to the Finsler function if its parallel transports preserve the Finslerian length of tangent vectors. Generalized Berwald manifolds are Finsler manifolds equipped with a compatible linear connection. In the paper we present a general and intrinsic method to characterize the compatible linear connections on a Finsler manifold of dimension three. We prove that if a compatible linear connection is not unique then the indicatrices must be Euclidean surfaces of revolution. The surplus freedom of choosing compatible linear connections is…
Using Seiberg-Witten theory, it is shown that any Kaehler metric of constant negative scalar curvature on a compact 4-manifold M minimizes the L^2-norm of scalar curvature among Riemannian metrics compatible with a fixed decomposition H^2(M)=(H^+) + (H^-). This implies, for example, that any such metric on a minimal ruled surface must be locally symmetric.
We consider a 3-dimensional smooth manifold $M$ equipped with an arbitrary, \textit{a priori} non-integrable, distribution (plane field) ${\cal D}$ and a vector field $T$ transverse to ${\cal D}$. Using a 1-form $ω$ such that ${\cal D} = \ker\,ω$ and $ω(T)=1$ we construct a 3-form analogous to that defining the Godbillon-Vey class of a foliation, and show how does this form depend on $ω$ and~$T$. For a compatible Riemannian metric on $M$, we express this 3-form in terms of the curvature and torsion of normal curves and the non-symmetric second fundamental form of ${\cal D}$. We deduce Euler-La…
An almost Kähler structure is {\it extremal} if the Hermitian scalar curvature is a Killing potential [29]. When the almost complex structure is integrable it coincides with extremal Kähler metric in the sense of Calabi [8]. We observe that the existence of an extremal {\it toric} almost Kähler structure of involutive type implies uniform K-stability and we point out the existence of a formal solution of the Abreu equation for any angle along the invariant divisor. Applying the recent result of Chen--Cheng [10] and He [27], we conclude that the existence of a compatible extremal toric almost K…
Finsler metrics are direct generalizations of Riemannian metrics such that the quadratic Riemannian indicatrices in the tangent spaces of a manifold are replaced by more general convex bodies as unit spheres. A linear connection on the base manifold is called compatible with the Finsler metric if the induced parallel transports preserve the Finslerian length of tangent vectors. Finsler manifolds admitting compatible linear connections are called generalized Berwald manifolds. Compatible linear connections are the solutions of the so-called compatibility equations containing the torsion compone…
We use the correspondence between extremal Sasaki structures and weighted extremal Kahler metrics defined on a regular quotient of a Sasaki manifold, established by the first two authors, and Lahdili's theory of weighted K-stability in order to define a suitable notion of (relative) weighted K-stability for compact Sasaki manifolds of regular type. We show that the (relative) weighted K-stability with respect to a maximal torus is a necessary condition for the existence of a (possibly irregular) extremal Sasaki metric. We also compare weighted K-stability to the K-stability of the correspondin…
We provide an explicit resolution of the existence problem for extremal Kaehler metrics on toric 4-orbifolds M with second Betti number b2(M)=2. More precisely we show that M admits such a metric if and only if its rational Delzant polytope (which is a labelled quadrilateral) is K-polystable in the relative, toric sense (as studied by S. Donaldson, E. Legendre, G. Szekelyhidi et al.). Furthermore, in this case, the extremal Kaehler metric is ambitoric, i.e., compatible with a conformally equivalent, oppositely oriented toric Kaehler metric, which turns out to be extremal as well. These results…
This paper concerns the explicit construction of extremal Kaehler metrics on total spaces of projective bundles, which have been studied in many places. We present a unified approach, motivated by the theory of hamiltonian 2-forms (as introduced and studied in previous papers in the series) but this paper is largely independent of that theory. We obtain a characterization, on a large family of projective bundles, of those `admissible' Kaehler classes (i.e., the ones compatible with the bundle structure in a way we make precise) which contain an extremal Kaehler metric. In many cases, such as o…
We give a general construction of extremal Kaehler metrics on the total space of certain holomorphic submersions, extending results of Dervan-Sektnan, Fine, and Hong. We consider submersions whose fibres admit a degeneration to Kaehler manifolds with constant scalar curvature, in a way that is compatible with the fibration structure. Thus we allow fibres that are K-semistable, rather than K-polystable; this is crucial to moduli theory. On these fibrations we phrase a partial differential equation whose solutions, called optimal symplectic connections, represent a canonical choice of a relative…
A 3D almost-Riemannian manifold is a generalized Riemannian manifold defined locally by 3 vector fields that play the role of an orthonormal frame, but could become collinear on some set $\Zz$ called the singular set. Under the Hormander condition, a 3D almost-Riemannian structure still has a metric space structure, whose topology is compatible with the original topology of the manifold. Almost-Riemannian manifolds were deeply studied in dimension 2. In this paper we start the study of the 3D case which appear to be reacher with respect to the 2D case, due to the presence of abnormal extremals…
The space of symplectic connections on a symplectic manifold is a symplectic affine space. M. Cahen and S. Gutt showed that the action of the group of Hamiltonian diffeomorphisms on this space is Hamiltonian and calculated the moment map. This is analogous to, but distinct from, the action of Hamiltonian diffeomorphisms on the space of compatible almost complex structures that motivates study of extremal Kähler metrics. In particular, moment constant connections are critical, where a symplectic connection is \textit{critical} if it is critical, with respect to arbitrary variations, for the $L^…
We study the Kähler geometry of stage n Bott manifolds, which can be viewed as $n$-dimensional generalizations of Hirzebruch surfaces. We show, using a simple induction argument and the generalized Calabi construction from [ACGT04,ACGT11], that any stage n Bott manifold $M_n$ admits an extremal Kähler metric. We also give necessary conditions for $M_n$ to admit a constant scalar curvature Kähler metric. We obtain more precise results for stage 3 Bott manifolds, including in particular some interesting relations with c-projective geometry and some explicit examples of almost Kähler structures. …
