Some Finsler spaces with homogeneous geodesics

A geodesic in a homogeneous Finsler space is called a homogeneous geodesic if it is an orbit of a one‐parameter subgroup of G . A homogeneous Finsler space is called Finsler g.o. space if its all geodesics are homogeneous. Recently, the author studied Finsler g.o. spaces and generalized some geometric results on Riemannian g.o. spaces to the Finslerian setting. In the present paper, we investigate homogeneous geodesics in homogeneous spaces, and obtain the sufficient and necessary condition for an space to be a g.o. space. As an application, we get a series of new examples of Finsler g.o. spaces.     

What is wrong with the Hausdorff measure in Finsler spaces

We construct a class of Finsler metrics in three-dimensional space such that all their geodesics are lines, but not all planes are extremal for their Hausdorff area functionals. This shows that if the Hausdorff measure is used as notion of volume on Finsler spaces, then totally geodesic submanifolds are not necessarily minimal, filling results such as those of Ivanov [On two-dimensional minimal fillings, St. Petersburg Math. J. 13 (2002) 17-25] do not hold, and integral-geometric formulas do not exist. On the other hand, using the Holmes-Thompson definition of volume, we prove a general Crofton formula for Finsler spaces and give an easy proof that their totally geodesic hypersurfaces are minimal.     

Curvatures of homogeneous Randers spaces

We study curvatures of homogeneous Randers spaces. After deducing the coordinate-free formulas of the flag curvature and Ricci scalar of homogeneous Randers spaces, we give several applications. We first present a direct proof of the fact that a homogeneous Randers space is Ricci quadratic if and only if it is a Berwald space. We then prove that any left invariant Randers metric on a non-commutative nilpotent Lie group must have three flags whose flag curvature is positive, negative and zero, respectively. This generalizes a result of J.A. Wolf on Riemannian metrics. We prove a conjecture of J. Milnor on the characterization of central elements of a real Lie algebra, in a more generalized sense. Finally, we study homogeneous Finsler spaces of positive flag curvature and particularly prove that the only compact connected simply connected Lie group admitting a left invariant Finsler metric with positive flag curvature is SU(2)$\text{SU}\left(2\right)$.     

标量曲率Finsler空间与Finsler度量的射影变换

本文研究了与一个Ricci平坦Finsler空间或一个常曲率Finsler空间射影相关的标量曲率Finsler空间．我们给出了这种标量曲率Finsler空间成为常曲率空间的充分必要条件.特别地，我们给出了射影平坦Finsler空间具有常曲率的条件．     

Minimal enclosing discs,circumcircles, and circumcenters in normed planes (Part II)

Until now there are almost no results on the precise geometric location of minimal enclosing balls of simplices in finite-dimensional real Banach spaces. We give a complete solution of the two-dimensional version of this problem, namely to locate minimal enclosing discs of triangles in arbitrary normed planes. It turns out that this solution is based on the classification of all possible shapes that the intersection of two norm circles can have, and on a new classification of triangles in normed planes via their angles. We also mention that our results are closely related to basic notions like coresets, Jung constants, the monotonicity lemma, and d-segments.     

General logical metatheorems for functional analysis

In this paper we prove general logical metatheorems which state that for large classes of theorems and proofs in (nonlinear) functional analysis it is possible to extract from the proofs effective bounds which depend only on very sparse local bounds on certain parameters. This means that the bounds are uniform for all parameters meeting these weak local boundedness conditions. The results vastly generalize related theorems due to the second author where the global boundedness of the underlying metric space (resp. a convex subset of a normed space) was assumed. Our results treat general classes of spaces such as metric, hyperbolic, CAT(0), normed, uniformly convex and inner product spaces and classes of functions such as nonexpansive, Hölder-Lipschitz, uniformly continuous, bounded and weakly quasi-nonexpansive ones. We give several applications in the area of metric fixed point theory. In particular, we show that the uniformities observed in a number of recently found effective bounds (by proof theoretic analysis) can be seen as instances of our general logical results.

     

Some classes of sprays in projective spray geometry

This paper studies some properties of projective changes in spray and Finsler geometry. Firstly, it obtains a comparison theorem on Ricci curvature for projectively related Finsler metrics. Secondly, it studies the properties of a class of projectively flat sprays, which particularly shows that there exist many isotropic sprays that cannot be induced by any (even singular) Finsler metrics.     

Free construction of CAT(1) spaces

We construct several non-trivial examples of CAT(1) spaces by using the idea of free construction. Received: 29 August 2005 Partially supported by the MEXT Grant-in-Aid for scientific research, and by the 2004 JSPS Postdoctoral Fellowships for Research Abroad.     

关于射影平坦Finsler空间

本文研究了射影平坦Finsler空间的几何量及其几何性质。证明了射影平坦Finsler空间的Ricci曲率可完全由射影因子简洁地刻画出来。同时还证明了，在射影平坦Finsler空间中，平均Berwald曲率S=0意味着Ricci曲率Ric是二次齐次的。此外，给出了一个射影平坦Finsler空间成为常曲率空间或局部Minkowski空间的充分条件。     

On the classification of weakly symmetric Finsler spaces

In this paper, we give the classification of some special types of weakly symmetric Finsler spaces. We first present a general principle to classify weakly symmetric Finsler spaces and also give a method to figure out the Berwald spaces among the class of weakly symmetric Finsler spaces. Then we give an explicit classification of weakly symmetric Finsler spaces with reductive isometric groups as well as the left invariant weakly symmetric Finsler metrics on nilpotent Lie groups of the Heisenberg type. As an application, we obtain a large number of high-dimensional examples of reversible Finsler spaces which are non-Berwaldian and with vanishing S-curvature, a kind of spaces which are sought after in an open problem of Z. Shen.     

The mean curvature flow in Minkowski spaces

Studying the geometric flow plays a powerful role in mathematics and physics. In this paper, we introduce the mean curvature flow on Finsler manifolds and give a number of examples of the mean curvature flow. For Minkowski spaces, a special case of Finsler manifolds, we prove the short time existence and uniqueness for solutions of the mean curvature flow and prove that the flow preserves the convexity and mean convexity. We also derive some comparison principles for the mean curvature flow.     

Differentiable Distance Spaces

The distance function \({\varrho(p, q) ({\rm or} d(p, q))}\) of a distance space (general metric space) is not differentiable in general. We investigate such distance spaces over \({\mathbb{R}^n}\), whose distance functions are differentiable like in case of Finsler spaces. These spaces have several good properties, yet they are not Finsler spaces (which are special distance spaces). They are situated between general metric spaces (distance spaces) and Finsler spaces. We will investigate such curves of differentiable distance spaces, which possess the same properties as geodesics do in Finsler spaces. So these curves can be considered as forerunners of Finsler geodesics. They are in greater plenitude than Finsler geodesics, but they become geodesics in a Finsler space. We show some properties of these curves, as well as some relations between differentiable distance spaces and Finsler spaces. We arrive to these curves and to our results by using distance spheres, and using no variational calculus. We often apply direct geometric considerations.     

Projective equivalence of Finsler and Riemannian surfaces

In this paper we ask when a Finsler surface is projectively equivalent to a given Riemannian surface and when is a Finsler surface projectively equivalent to some Riemannian surface in general. We obtain a necessary and sufficient condition for projective equivalence in both cases. We then consider the latter condition in terms of the Christoffel symbols of the Riemannian metric and investigate when six functions of two variables are the Christoffel symbols of a Riemannian metric. We employ an exterior differential system to analyze when four functions of two variables are the four projective quantities of a Riemannian metric. We end the paper with a theorem which applies the necessary and sufficient condition to 2-dimensional Randers metrics.     

Interpolation between Brezis–Vázquez and Poincaré inequalities on nonnegatively curved spaces: sharpness and rigidities

This paper is devoted to investigate an interpolation inequality between the Brezis–Vázquez and Poincaré inequalities (shortly, BPV inequality) on nonnegatively curved spaces. As a model case, we first prove that the BPV inequality holds on any Minkowski space, by fully characterizing the existence and shape of its extremals. We then prove that if a complete Finsler manifold with nonnegative Ricci curvature supports the BPV inequality, then its flag curvature is identically zero. In particular, we deduce that a Berwald space of nonnegative Ricci curvature supports the BPV inequality if and only if it is isometric to a Minkowski space. Our arguments explore fine properties of Bessel functions, comparison principles, and anisotropic symmetrization on Minkowski spaces. As an application, we characterize the existence of nonzero solutions for a quasilinear PDE involving the Finsler–Laplace operator and a Hardy-type singularity on Minkowski spaces where the sharp BPV inequality plays a crucial role. The results are also new in the Riemannian/Euclidean setting.     

Functions related to convexity and smoothness of normed spaces

We introduce a few functions related to convexity and smoothness of normed spaces. Those functions turn out to be moduli of convexity or smoothness or play an intermediate role. We calculate the exact formulas for introduced functions in some classical Banach spaces. An application to geometry of normed spaces is also indicated.     

Locally symmetric positively curved Finsler spaces

We showed that any compact locally symmetric Finsler metric with positive flag curvature must be Riemannian. Dedicated to Professor Karsten Grove on the occassion of his sixtieth birthday Received: 8 May 2006     

On weakly harmonic maps from Finsler to Riemannian manifolds

We prove global C0,α$C^{0,\alpha }$-estimates for harmonic maps from Finsler manifolds into regular balls of Riemannian target manifolds generalizing results of Giaquinta, Hildebrandt, and Hildebrandt, Jost and Widman from Riemannian to Finsler domains. As consequences we obtain a Liouville theorem for entire harmonic maps on simple Finsler manifolds, and an existence theorem for harmonic maps from Finsler manifolds into regular balls of a Riemannian target.     

Comparison theorems in Finsler geometry and their applications

We prove Hessian comparison theorems, Laplacian comparison theorems and volume comparison theorems for Finsler manifolds under various curvature conditions. As applications, we derive McKean type theorems for the first eigenvalue of Finsler manifolds, as well as generalize to Finsler manifolds a result on fundamental groups due to Milnor.The research of the Y. L. Xin was partially supported by NSFC of and SFECC.     

Three dimensional homogeneous Finsler manifolds

In this paper we study three dimensional homogeneous Finsler manifolds. We first obtain a complete list of the three‐dimensional homogeneous manifolds which admit invariant Finsler metrics. Then we consider invariant Randers metrics and present the classification of three dimensional homogeneous Randers spaces under isometrics.