Multiple closed geodesics on 3-spheres

This paper is devoted to a study on closed geodesics on Finsler and Riemannian spheres. We call a prime closed geodesic on a Finsler manifold rational, if the basic normal form decomposition (cf. [Y. Long, Bott formula of the Maslov-type index theory, Pacific J. Math. 187 (1999) 113-149]) of its linearized Poincaré map contains no 2×2 rotation matrix with rotation angle which is an irrational multiple of π, or irrational otherwise. We prove that if there exists only one prime closed geodesic on a d-dimensional irreversible Finsler sphere with d?2, it cannot be rational. Then we further prove that there exist always at least two distinct prime closed geodesics on every irreversible Finsler 3-dimensional sphere. Our method yields also at least two geometrically distinct closed geodesics on every reversible Finsler as well as Riemannian 3-dimensional sphere. We prove also such results hold for all compact simply connected 3-dimensional manifolds with irreversible or reversible Finsler as well as Riemannian metrics.     

On the average indices of closed geodesics on positively curved Finsler spheres

In this paper, we prove that on every Finsler n-sphere (S ⁿ , F) for n ≥  6 with reversibility λ and flag curvature K satisfying ${(\frac{\lambda}{\lambda+1})^2 \, < \, K \, \le \, 1}$ , either there exist infinitely many prime closed geodesics or there exist ${[\frac{n}{2}]-2}$ closed geodesics possessing irrational average indices. If in addition the metric is bumpy, then there exist n?3 closed geodesics possessing irrational average indices provided the number of prime closed geodesics is finite.     

Closed geodesics on Finsler spheres

In this paper, we prove that for every Finsler n-sphere (S ⁿ ,?F) all of whose prime closed geodesics are non-degenerate with reversibility λ and flag curvature K satisfying ${\left(\frac{\lambda}{\lambda+1}\right)^2 < K \le 1,}$ there exist ${2[\frac{n+1}{2}]-1}$ prime closed geodesics; moreover, there exist ${2[\frac{n}{2}]-1}$ non-hyperbolic prime closed geodesics provided the number of prime closed geodesics is finite.     

Closed geodesics on positively curved Finsler spheres

In this paper, we prove that for every Finsler n-sphere (Sn,F) for n?3 with reversibility λ and flag curvature K satisfying , either there exist infinitely many prime closed geodesics or there exists one elliptic closed geodesic whose linearized Poincaré map has at least one eigenvalue which is of the form exp(πiμ) with an irrational μ. Furthermore, there always exist three prime closed geodesics on any (S³,F) satisfying the above pinching condition.     

An arithmetic property of the set of angles between closed geodesics on hyperbolic surfaces of finite type

For a hyperbolic surface S of finite type we consider the set A(S) of angles between closed geodesics on S. Our main result is that there are only finitely many rational multiples of \(\pi \) in A(S).     

Multiple closed geodesics on bumpy Finsler n-spheres

In this paper we prove that for every bumpy Finsler metric F on every rationally homological n-dimensional sphere Sn with n?2, there exist always at least two distinct prime closed geodesics.     

The length of closed geodesics on random Riemann surfaces

Short geodesics are important in the study of the geometry and the spectra of Riemann surfaces. Bers’ theorem gives a global bound on the length of the first 3g ? 3 geodesics. We use Brooks and Makover’s construction of random Riemann surfaces to investigate the distribution of short (< log(g)) geodesics on random Riemann surfaces. We calculate the expected value of the shortest geodesic, and show that if one orders geodesics by length \({\gamma_1\le \gamma_2\le \cdots \le \gamma_i ,\ldots}\), then for fixed k, if one allows the genus to go to infinity, the length of γ _k is independent of the genus.     

Positive-fraction intersection results and variations of weak epsilon-nets

A connected Finsler space (M, F) is said to be homogeneous if it admits a transitive connected Lie group G of isometries. A geodesic in a homogeneous Finsler space (G / H, F) is called a homogeneous geodesic if it is an orbit of a one-parameter subgroup of G. In this paper, we study the problem of the existence of homogeneous geodesics on a homogeneous Finsler space, and prove that any homogeneous Finsler space of odd dimension admits at least one homogeneous geodesic through each point.     

On the existence of closed magnetic geodesics via symplectic reduction

Let (M, g) be a closed Riemannian manifold and \(\sigma \) be a closed 2-form on M representing an integer cohomology class. In this paper, using symplectic reduction, we show how the problem of existence of closed magnetic geodesics for the magnetic flow of the pair \((g,\sigma )\) can be interpreted as a critical point problem for a Rabinowitz-type action functional defined on the cotangent bundle \(T^*E\) of a suitable \(S^1\)-bundle E over M or, equivalently, as a critical point problem for a Lagrangian-type action functional defined on the free loopspace of E. We thenstudy the relation between the stability property of energy hypersurfacesin \((T^*M,dp\wedge dq+\pi ^*\sigma )\) and of the corresponding codimension2 coisotropic submanifolds in \((T^*E,dp\wedge dq)\) arising via symplecticreduction. Finally, we reprove the main result of Asselle and Benedetti (J Topol Anal 8(3):545–570, 2016) in this setting.     

The existence of two closed geodesics on every Finsler 2-sphere

In this paper, we prove that for every Finsler metric on S ² there exist at least two distinct prime closed geodesics.     

Einstein Finsler metrics and killing vector fields on Riemannian manifolds

We use a Killing form on a Riemannian manifold to construct a class of Finsler metrics. We find equations that characterize Einstein metrics among this class. In particular, we construct a family of Einstein metrics on S ³ with Ric = 2F ², Ric = 0 and Ric = -2F ², respectively. This family of metrics provides an important class of Finsler metrics in dimension three, whose Ricci curvature is a constant, but the flag curvature is not.     

The index growth and multiplicity of closed geodesics

In the recent paper [31] of Long and Duan (2009), we classified closed geodesics on Finsler manifolds into rational and irrational two families, and gave a complete understanding on the index growth properties of iterates of rational closed geodesics. This study yields that a rational closed geodesic cannot be the only closed geodesic on every irreversible or reversible (including Riemannian) Finsler sphere, and that there exist at least two distinct closed geodesics on every compact simply connected irreversible or reversible (including Riemannian) Finsler 3-dimensional manifold. In this paper, we study the index growth properties of irrational closed geodesics on Finsler manifolds. This study allows us to extend results in [31] of Long and Duan (2009) on rational, and in [12] of Duan and Long (2007), [39] of Rademacher (2010), and [40] of Rademacher (2008) on completely non-degenerate closed geodesics on spheres and CP² to every compact simply connected Finsler manifold. Then we prove the existence of at least two distinct closed geodesics on every compact simply connected irreversible or reversible (including Riemannian) Finsler 4-dimensional manifold.     

Counting closed geodesics in globally hyperbolic maximal compact AdS 3-manifolds

We propose a definition for the length of closed geodesics in a globally hyperbolic maximal compact (GHMC) Anti-De Sitter manifold. We then prove that the number of closed geodesics of length less than R grows exponentially fast with R and the exponential growth rate is related to the critical exponent associated to the two hyperbolic surfaces coming from Mess parametrization. We get an equivalent of three results for quasi-Fuchsian manifolds in the GHMC setting: Bowen’s rigidity theorem of critical exponent, Sanders’ isolation theorem and McMullen’s examples lightening the behaviour of this exponent when the surfaces range over Teichmüller space.     

Multiplicity and stability of closed geodesics on bumpy Finsler 3-spheres

We prove that for every Q-homological Finsler 3-sphere (M, F) with a bumpy and irreversible metric F, either there exist two non-hyperbolic prime closed geodesics, or there exist at least three prime closed geodesics. Huagui Duan: Partially supported by NNSF and RFDP of MOE of China. Yiming Long: Partially supported by the 973 Program of MOST, Yangzi River Professorship, NNSF, MCME, RFDP, LPMC of MOE of China, S. S. Chern Foundation, and Nankai University.     

Semigroup graded algebras and graded PI-exponent

Let S be a semigroup. We study the structure of graded-simple S-graded algebras A and the exponential rate PIexp ^S-gr(A):= lim_n→∞ \(\sqrt[n]{{c_n^{S - gr}\left( A \right)}}\) of growth of codimensions c _n ^S-gr (A) of their graded polynomial identities. This is of great interest since such algebras can have non-integer PIexp ^S-gr(A) despite being finite dimensional and associative. In addition, such algebras can have a non-trivial Jacobson radical J(A). All this is in strong contrast with the case when S is a group since in the group case J(A) is trivial, PIexp ^S-gr(A) is always integer and, if the base field is algebraically closed, then PIexp ^S-gr(A) equals dimA. Without any restrictions on the base field F, we classify graded-simple S-graded algebras A for a class of semigroups S which is complementary to the class of groups. We explicitly describe the structure of J(A) showing that J(A) is built up of pieces of a maximal S-graded semisimple subalgebra of A which turns out to be simple. When F is algebraically closed, we get an upper bound for \({\overline {\lim } _{n \to \infty }}\sqrt[n]{{c_n^{S - gr}\left( A \right)}}\). If A/J(A) ≈ M ₂(F) and S is a right zero band, we show that this upper bound is sharp and PIexp ^S-gr(A) indeed exists. In particular, we present an infinite family of graded-simple algebras A with arbitrarily large non-integer PIexp ^S-gr(A).     

Strongly convex weakly complex Berwald metrics and real Landsberg metrics

Under the assumption that' is a strongly convex weakly Khler Finsler metric on a complex manifold M, we prove that F is a weakly complex Berwald metric if and only if F is a real Landsberg metric.This result together with Zhong(2011) implies that among the strongly convex weakly Kahler Finsler metrics there does not exist unicorn metric in the sense of Bao(2007). We also give an explicit example of strongly convex Kahler Finsler metric which is simultaneously a complex Berwald metric, a complex Landsberg metric,a real Berwald metric, and a real Landsberg metric.     

Bumpy metrics on spheres and minimal index growth

The existence of two geometrically distinct closed geodesics on an n-dimensional sphere \(S^n\) with a non-reversible and bumpy Finsler metric was shown independently by Duan and Long [7] and the author [25]. We simplify the proof of this statement by the following observation: If for some \(N \in \mathbb {N}\) all closed geodesics of index \(\le \)N of a non-reversible and bumpy Finsler metric on \(S^n\) are geometrically equivalent to the closed geodesic c, then there is a covering \(c^r\) of minimal index growth, i.e.,

$$\begin{aligned} \mathrm{ind}(c^\mathrm{rm})=m \,\mathrm{ind}(c^r)-(m-1)(n-1), \end{aligned}$$

for all \(m \ge 1\) with \(\mathrm{ind}\left( c^\mathrm{rm}\right) \le N.\) But this leads to a contradiction for \(N =\infty \) as pointed out by Goresky and Hingston [13]. We also discuss perturbations of Katok metrics on spheres of even dimension carrying only finitely many closed geodesics. For arbitrarily large \(L>0\), we obtain on \(S^2\) a metric of positive flag curvature carrying only two closed geodesics of length \(<L\) which do not intersect.

     

An improvement of the five halves theorem of J. Boardman

Let (M ^m , T) be a smooth involution on a closed smooth m-dimensional manifold and F = ∪ _j=0 ⁿ F ^j (n ≤ m) its fixed point set, where F ^j denotes the union of those components of F having dimension j. The famous Five Halves Theorem of J. Boardman, announced in 1967, establishes that, if F is nonbounding, then m ≤ 5/2n. In this paper we obtain an improvement of the Five Halves Theorem when the top dimensional component of F, F ⁿ , is nonbounding. Specifically, let ω = (i ₁, i ₂, …, i _r ) be a non-dyadic partition of n and s _ω (x ₁, x ₂, …, x _n ) the smallest symmetric polynomial over Z ₂ on degree one variables x ₁, x ₂, …, x _n containing the monomial \(x_1^{i_1 } x_2^{i_2 } \cdots x_r^{i_r }\). Write s _ω (F ⁿ ) ∈ H ⁿ (F ⁿ , Z ₂) for the usual cohomology class corresponding to s _ω (x ₁, x ₂, …, x _n ), and denote by ?(F ⁿ ) the minimum length of a nondyadic partition ω with s _ω (F ⁿ ) ≠ 0 (here, the length of ω = (i ₁, i ₂, …, i _r ) is r). We will prove that, if (M ^m , T) is an involution for which the top dimensional component of the fixed point set, F ⁿ , is nonbounding, then m ≤ 2n + ?(F ⁿ ); roughly speaking, the bound for m depends on the degree of decomposability of the top dimensional component of the fixed point set. Further, we will give examples to show that this bound is best possible.     

CR-structures of codimension 2 on tangent bundles in Riemann–Finsler geometry

We determine a 2-codimensional CR-structure on the slit tangent bundle \(T_0M\) of a Finsler manifold (M, F) by imposing a condition on the almost complex structure \(\Psi \) associated to F when restricted to the structural distribution of a framed f-structure. This condition is satisfied when (M, F) is of scalar flag curvature (particularly flat). In the Riemannian case (M, g) this last condition means that g is of constant curvature. This CR-structure is finally generalized by using one positive parameter but under more difficult conditions.     

A class of metrics and foliations on tangent bundle of Finsler manifolds

Let (M,F) be a Finsler manifold, and let TM ₀ be the slit tangent bundle of M with a generalized Riemannian metric G, which is induced by F. In this paper, we extract many natural foliations of (TM ₀,G) and study their geometric properties. Next, we use this approach to obtain new characterizations of Finsler manifolds with positive constant flag curvature. We also investigate the relations between Levi-Civita connection, Cartan connection, Vaisman connection, vertical foliation, and Reinhart spaces.