Let Σbe a minimal submanifold of \R^{n+m} that can be represented as the graph of a smooth map f:\R^n-->\R^m. We apply a formula we derived in the study of mean curvature flow to obtain conditions under which Σmust be an affine subspace. Our result covers all known ones in the general case. The conditions are stated in terms of the singular values of $df$.
In this note we will prove that an $n$ dimensional graphic self-shrinker in $R^{n+m}$ with flat normal bundle is a linear subspace. This result is a generalization of the corresponding result of Lu Wang in codimension one case.
Combining the tools of geometric analysis with properties of Jordan angles and angle space distributions, we derive a spherical and a Euclidean Bernstein theorem for minimal submanifolds of arbitrary dimension and codimension, under the condition that the Gauss image is contained in some geometrically defined closed region of a Grassmannian manifold. The proof depends on the subharmoncity of an auxiliary function, the Codazzi equations and geometric measure theory.
Under suitable conditions on the range of the Gauss map of a complete submanifold of Euclidean space with parallel mean curvature, we construct a strongly subharmonic function and derive a-priori estimates for the harmonic Gauss map. The required conditions here are more general than in previous work and they therefore enable us to improve substantially previous results for the Lawson-Osseman problem concerning the regularity of minimal submanifolds in higher codimension and to derive Bernstein type results.
Let S be a C^2 H-minimal noncharacteristic hypersurface in the first Heisenberg group. We show that if S contains a graphical strip, then it is not a stable minimal surface. Moreover, we show that if S is a C^2 H-minimal noncharacteristic entire graph which is not itself a vertical plane, then S contains a graphical strip. Thus, as a corollary, we obtain an analogue of the Bernstein theorem: the only stable C^2 H-minimal noncharacteristic entire graphs are the vertical planes.
A result of B.Solomon (On the Gauss map of an area-minimizing hypersurface. 1984. Journal of Differential Geometry, 19(1), 221-232.) says that a compact minimal hypersurface $M^k$ of the sphere $S^{k+1}$ with $H^1(M)=0$, whose Gauss map omits a neighborhood of an $S^{k-1}$ equator, is totally geodesic in $S^{k+1}$. We develop a new proof strategy which can also obtain an analogous result for codimension 2 compact minimal submanifolds of $S^{k+1}$.
We study the problem of finding a minimal graph with prescribed boundary data in arbitrary dimension and codimension. Existence, uniqueness, stability and regularity are treated. We first present the well-known results for codimension one: Jenkins-Serrin's existence theorem, convexity properties of the area which give uniqueness and stability and De Giorgi's theorem for regularity. In higher codimension we first discuss the counterexamples of Lawson and Osserman. Then we present the recent results of Mu-Tao Wang: we use the mean curvature flow to show existence for small boundary data and we p…
We identify a region $\Bbb{W}_{\f{1}{3}}$ in a Grassmann manifold $\grs{n}{m}$, not covered by a usual matrix coordinate chart, with the following important property. For a complete $n-$submanifold in $\ir{n+m} \, (n\ge 3, m\ge2)$ with parallel mean curvature whose image under the Gauss map is contained in a compact subset $K\subset\Bbb{W}_{\f{1}{3}}\subset\grs{n}{m}$, we can construct strongly subharmonic functions and derive a priori estimates for the harmonic Gauss map. While we do not know yet how close our region is to being optimal in this respect, it is substantially larger than what co…
Moser's Bernstein theorem \cite{moser61} says that an entire minimal graph of codimension 1 with bounded slope must be a hyperplane. An analogous result for arbitrary codimension is not true, by an example of Lawson-Osserman. Here, we show that Moser's theorem nevertheless extends to codimension 2, i.e., a minimal $p$-submanifold in $R^{p+2}$, which is the graph of a smooth function defined on the entire $R^p$ with bounded slope, must be a $p$-plane. Our method depends on convexity properties of Grassmannians which come into play as the targets of the (harmonic) Gauss maps of our minimal subma…
Self-shrinkers are important geometric objects in the study of mean curvature flows, while the Bernstein Theorem is one of the most profound results in minimal surface theory. We prove a Bernstein type result for graphical self-shrinker surfaces with codimension two in $\mathbb{R}^4$. Namely, under certain natural conditions on the Jacobian of any smooth map from $\mathbb{R}^2$ to $\mathbb{R}^2$, we show that the self-shrinker which is the graph of this map must be affine linear. The proof relies on the derivation of structure equations of graphical self-shrinkers in terms of the parallel form…
In this paper, we discuss the self-shrinking systems in higher codimensional spaces. We mainly obtain several Bernstein type results and a sharp growth estimate.
Let f:Σ_1 --> Σ_2 be a map between compact Riemannian manifolds of constant curvature. This article considers the evolution of the graph of f in the product of Σ_1 and Σ_2 by the mean curvature flow. Under suitable conditions on the curvature of Σ_1 and Σ_2 and the differential of the initial map, we show that the flow exists smoothly for all time. At each instant t, the flow remains the graph of a map f_t and f_t converges to a constant map as t approaches infinity. This also provides a regularity estimate for Lipschtz initial data.
We derive pointwise curvature estimates for graphical mean curvature flows in higher codimensions. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first such estimates without assuming smallness of first derivatives of the defining map. An immediate application is a convergence theorem of the mean curvature flow of the graph of an area decreasing map between flat Riemann surfaces.
We consider the Dirichlet boundary value problem for graphical maximal submanifolds inside Lorentzian type ambient spaces, and obtain general existence and uniqueness results which apply to any codimension.
We give an explicit formula for the Gauss-Bonnet-Chern mass of an asymptotically flat graphical manifold of arbitrary codimension and use it to prove the positive mass theorem and the Penrose inequality for graphs with flat normal bundle.
We derive curvature estimates for minimal submanifolds in Euclidean space for arbitrary dimension and codimension via Gauss map. Thus, Schoen-Simon-Yau's results and Ecker-Huisken's results are generalized to higher codimension. In this way we improve Hildebrandt-Jost-Widman's result for the Bernstein type theorem.
We obtain new curvature estimates and Bernstein type results for minimal $n-$submanifolds in $\ir{n+m},\, m\ge 2$ under the condition that the rank of its Gauss map is at most 2. In particular, this applies to minimal surfaces in Euclidean spaces of arbitrary codimension.
A weighted area estimate for entire graphs with bounded weighted mean curvature in Gauss space is given by a simple proof. Bernstein type theorems for self shrinkers (\cite {wa}) as well as for graphic $λ$-hypersurfaces (\cite{ chwe2}) follow immediately as consequences.
In this paper, our purpose is to study rigidity theorems for $λ$-hypersurfaces in Euclidean space under Gauss map. As a Bernstein type problem for $λ$-hypersurfaces, we prove that an entirely graphic $λ$-hypersurface in Euclidean space is a hyperplane.
In this paper we study an extension of the Bernstein Theorem for minimal spacelike surfaces of the four dimensional Minkowski vector space form and we obtain the class of those surfaces which are also graphics and have non-zero Gauss curvature. That is the class of entire solutions of a system of two elliptic non-linear equations that is an extension of the equation of minimal graphic of $\mathbb R^3$. Therefore, we prove that the so-called Bernstein property does not hold in general for the case of graphic spacelike surfaces in $\mathbb R^4_1$. In addition, we also obtain explicitly the conju…
This is a survey of our work on spacelike graphic submanifolds in pseudo-Riemannian products, namely on Heinz-Chern and Bernstein-Calabi results and on the mean curvature flow, with applications to the homotopy of maps between Riemannian manifolds.
We generalize a Bernstein-type result due to Albujer and Alías, for maximal surfaces in a curved Lorentzian product 3-manifold of the form $Σ_1\times \mathbb{R}$, to higher dimension and codimension. We consider $M$ a complete spacelike graphic submanifold with parallel mean curvature, defined by a map $f: Σ_1\to Σ_2$ between two Riemannian manifolds $(Σ_1^m, g_1)$ and $(Σ^n_2, g_2)$ of sectional curvatures $K_1$ and $K_2$, respectively. We take on $Σ_1\times Σ_2$ the pseudo-Riemannian product metric $g_1-g_2$. Under the curvature conditions, $\mathrm{Ricci}_1 \geq 0$ and $K_1\geq K_2$, we pro…
It is well-known that a minimal graph of codimension one is stable, i.e. the second variation of the area functional is non-negative. This is no longer true for higher codimensional minimal graphs. In this note, we prove that a minimal graph of any codimension is stable if its normal bundle is flat. We also prove minimal graphs of dimension no greater than six and any codimension is flat if the the normal bundle is flat and the density at infinity is finite. Such a Bernstein type theorem holds in any dimension if we assume additionally growth conditions on the volume element.
To study the Lawson-Osserman's counterexample to the Bernstein problem for minimal submanifolds of higher codimension, a new geometric concept, submanifolds in Euclidean space with constant Jordan angles(CJA), is introduced. By exploring the second fundamental form of submanifolds with CJA, we can characterize the Lawson-Osserman's cone from the viewpoint of Jordan angles.
We study the spectrum of the Laplace operator of a complete minimal properly immersed hypersurface $M$ in $\R^{n+1}$. (1) Under a volume growth condition on extrinsic balls and a condition on the unit normal at infinity, we prove that $M$ has only essential spectrum consisting of the half line $[0, +\infty)$. This is the case when $\lim_{\tilde{r}\to +\infty}\tilde{r}κ_i=0$, where $\tilde{r}$ is the extrinsic distance to a point of $M$ and $κ_i$ are the principal curvatures. (2) If the $κ_i$ satisfy the decay conditions $|κ_i|\leq 1/\tilde{r}$, and strict inequality is achieved at some point $…
For any $Λ>0$, let $\mathcal{M}_{n,Λ}$ denote the space containing all locally Lipschitz minimal graphs of dimension $n$ and of arbitrary codimension $m$ in Euclidean space $\mathbb{R}^{n+m}$ with uniformly bounded 2-dilation $Λ$ of their graphic functions. In this paper, we show that this is a natural class to extend structural results known for codimension one. In particular, we prove that any tangent cone $C$ of $M\in\mathcal{M}_{n,Λ}$ at infinity has multiplicity one. This enables us to get a Neumann-Poincar$\mathrm{\acute{e}}$ inequality on stationary indecomposable components of $C$. A c…
Given $(\bar{M},Ω)$ a calibrated Riemannian manifold with a parallel calibration of rank $m$, and $M^m$ an immersed orientable submanifold with parallel mean curvature $H$ we prove that if $\cos θ$ is bounded away from zero, where $θ$ is the $Ω$-angle of $M$, and if $M$ has zero Cheeger constant, then $M$ is minimal. In the particular case $M$ is complete with $Ricc^M\geq 0$ we may replace the boundedness condition on $\cos θ$ by $\cos θ\geq Cr^{-β}$, when $r\to +\infty$, where $ 0\leqβ<1 $ and $C > 0$ are constants and $r$ is the distance function to a point in $M$. Our proof is surprisingly …
This survey describes some recent rigidity results obtained by the authors for the prescribed mean curvature problem on graphs $u : M \rightarrow \mathbb{R}$. Emphasis is put on minimal, CMC and capillary graphs, as well as on graphical solitons for the mean curvature flow, in warped product ambient spaces. A detailed analysis of the mean curvature operator is given, focusing on maximum principles at infinity, Liouville properties, gradient estimates. Among the geometric applications, we mention the Bernstein theorem for positive entire minimal graphs on manifolds with non-negative Ricci curva…