First-order regularity of convex functions on Carnot Groups

We prove that h-convex functions on Carnot groups of step two are locally Lipschitz continuous with respect to any intrinsic metric. We show that an additional measurability condition implies the local Lipschitz continuity of h-convex functions on arbitrary Carnot groups. To the Memory of Q. G.     

A note on a generalized form of the Laplacian and of sub-Laplacians

In this note we prove a recent conjecture of Hasson [11]: we show that, for a locally integrable function u, a sufficient condition to be harmonic is that $ \lim\limits_{r\to 0^+} r^{-2}(M_{r}u-u) = 0 $ in the weak sense of distributions (M _r being the averaging operator on balls of radius r). We also extend this and other results to the setting of sub-Laplacians on Carnot groups.Investigation supported by University of Bologna. Funds for selected research topics.     

A $\Gamma$-convergence result for doubling metric measures and associated perimeters

Abstract. In this paper we study the notion of perimeter associated with doubling metric measures or strongly weights. We prove that the metric perimeter in the sense of L. Ambrosio and M. Miranda jr. coincides with the metric Minkowski content and can be obtained also as a -limit of Modica-Mortola type degenerate integral functionals. Received: 27 August 2001 / Accepted: 29 November 2001 / Published online: 10 June 2002 Investigation supported by University of Bologna, funds for selected research topics and by GNAMPA of INdAM, Italy. The authors are very grateful to Luigi Ambrosio and Francesco Serra Cassano for making their preprints available to them, for listening with patience and for many unvaluable suggestions.     

Quasiregular maps on Carnot groups

In this paper we initiate the study of quasiregular maps in a sub-Riemannian geometry of general Carnot groups. We suggest an analytic definition for quasiregularity and then show that nonconstant quasiregular maps are open and discrete maps on Carnot groups which are two-step nilpotent and of Heisenberg type; we further establish, under the same assumption, that the branch set of a nonconstant quasiregular map has Haar measure zero and, consequently, that quasiregular maps are almost everywhere differentiable in the sense of Pansu. Our method is that of nonlinear potential theory. We have aimed at an exposition accessible to readers of varied background. Dedicated to Seppo Rickman on his sixtieth birthday J.H. was partially supported by NSF, the Academy of Finland, and the A. P. Sloan Foundation. I.H. was partially supported by the EU HCM contract no. CHRX-CT92-0071.     

A sufficient condition for nonrigidity of Carnot groups

In this article we consider contact mappings on Carnot groups. Namely, we are interested in those mappings whose differential preserves the horizontal space, defined by the first stratum of the natural stratification of the Lie algebra of a Carnot group. We give a sufficient condition for a Carnot group G to admit an infinite dimensional space of contact mappings, that is, for G to be nonrigid. A generalization of Kirillov’s Lemma is also given. Moreover, we construct a new example of nonrigid Carnot group. This research was partly supported by the Swiss National Science Foundation. The author would like to thank H. M. Reimann for the helpful advices and the constant support.     

Intrinsic regular submanifolds in Heisenberg groups are differentiable graphs

We characterize intrinsic regular submanifolds in the Heisenberg group as intrinsic differentiable graphs. G. Arena is supported by MIUR (Italy), by INDAM and by University of Trento. R. Serapioni is supported by MIUR (Italy), by GALA project of the Sixth Framework Programme of European Community and by University of Trento.     

A non-commutative version of the first alexandroff decomposition theorem in ordered topological groups

In this paper we establish a decomposition theorem for a positive regular measure on an orthoalgebra with values in an ordered topological group not necessarily commutative. We deduce from it the A. D. Alexandroff’s classical first decomposition theorem and we discuss its uniqueness in the setting of metric spaces. This research is partially supported by the project Analisi Reale of Ministero dell’Università e della Ricerca Scientifica e Tecnologica (Italy) and by Gruppo Nazionale per l’Analisi Funzionale e Applicazioni (Italy).     

Horizontal submanifolds of groups of Heisenberg type

We study maximal horizontal subgroups of Carnot groups of Heisenberg type. We classify those of dimension half of that of the canonical distribution (“lagrangians”) and illustrate some notable ones of small dimension. An infinitesimal classification of the arbitrary maximal horizontal submanifolds follows as a consequence. This work was supported by CONICET, Antorchas, FONCyT and Secyt (UNC).     

The Bernstein problem for intrinsic graphs in Heisenberg groups and calibrations

In this paper we deal with some problems concerning minimal hypersurfaces in Carnot-Carathéodory (CC) structures. More precisely we will introduce a general calibration method in this setting and we will study the Bernstein problem for entire regular intrinsic minimal graphs in a meaningful and simpler class of CC spaces, i.e. the Heisenberg group . In particular we will positively answer to the Bernstein problem in the case n =  1 and we will provide counter examples when . V.B.A. is supported by MIUR, Italy, GNAMPA of INDAM and University of Trento, Italy. F.S.C. is supported by MIUR, Italy, GNAMPA of INDAM and University of Trento, Italy. D.V. is supported by MIUR, Italy, GNAMPA of INDAM and Scuola Normale Superiore, Italy. Part of the work was done while D.V. was a visitor at the University of Trento. He wishes to thank the Department of Mathematics for its hospitality.     

Rectifiability of Sets of Finite Perimeter in Carnot Groups: Existence of a Tangent Hyperplane

We consider sets of locally finite perimeter in Carnot groups. We show that if E is a set of locally finite perimeter in a Carnot group G then, for almost every x∈G with respect to the perimeter measure of E, some tangent of E at x is a vertical halfspace. This is a partial extension of a theorem of Franchi-Serapioni-Serra Cassano in step 2 Carnot groups: they show in Math. Ann. 321, 479–531, 2001 and J. Geom. Anal. 13, 421–466, 2003 that, for almost every x, E has a unique tangent at x, and this tangent is a vertical halfspace. The second author was partially supported by NSF grant DMS-0701515.     

Extensions of group-valued set functions

The problem of common extension ofcharges (finitely additive measures) is generalised to include group-valued functions defined on a system of sets (u-systems). To eachu-systemU an Abelian groupH(U) is attached. Every Abelian group is isomorphic to one of the formH(U). The groupH(U) is an indicator for extendability of charges fromU to the Boolean algebra generated byU. AllG-valued measures extend if and only if Ext(H(U),G)=0, for instance. Supported as van Vleck visiting professor at Wesleyan University, Connecticut in 1993. Partially supported by the Graduierten KollogTheoretische und experimentelle Methoden der reinen Mathematik of Essen University, a project No. G-0294-081.06/93 of the German-Israeli Foundation for Scientific Research & Development and by the German Academic Exchange, DAAD 1994.     

Improving dimension estimates for Furstenberg-type sets

In this paper we study the problem of estimating the generalized Hausdorff dimension of Furstenberg sets in the plane. For α∈(0,1], a set F in the plane is said to be an α-Furstenberg set if for each direction e there is a line segment ?e in the direction of e for which dimH(?e∩F)?α. It is well known that , and it is also known that these sets can have zero measure at their critical dimension. By looking at general Hausdorff measures Hh defined for doubling functions, that need not be power laws, we obtain finer estimates for the size of the more general h-Furstenberg sets. Further, this approach allow us to sharpen the known bounds on the dimension of classical Furstenberg sets.The main difficulty we had to overcome, was that if Hh(F)=0, there always exists g?h such that Hg(F)=0 (here ? refers to the natural ordering on general Hausdorff dimension functions). Hence, in order to estimate the measure of general Furstenberg sets, we have to consider dimension functions that are a true step down from the critical one. We provide rather precise estimates on the size of this step and by doing so, we can include a family of zero dimensional Furstenberg sets associated to dimension functions that grow faster than any power function at zero. With some additional growth conditions on these zero dimensional functions, we extend the known inequalities to include the endpoint α=0.     

Hardy–Sobolev Type Inequalities with Sharp Constants in Carnot–Carathéodory Spaces

We prove a generalization with sharp constants of a classical inequality due to Hardy to Carnot groups of arbitrary step, or more general Carnot–Carathéodory spaces associated with a system of vector fields of Hörmander type. Under a suitable additional assumption (see Eq. 1.6 below) we are able to extend such result to the nonlinear case \(p\not= 2\). We also obtain a sharp inequality of Hardy–Sobolev type.     

Regularity of minimizers of the calculus of variations in Carnot groups via hypoellipticity of systems of Hörmander type

We prove the hypoellipticity for systems of H?rmander type with constant coefficients in Carnot groups of step 2. This result is used to implement blow-up methods and prove partial regularity for local minimizers of non-convex functionals, and for solutions of non-linear systems which appear in the study of non-isotropic metric structures with scalings. We also establish estimates of the Hausdorff dimension of the singular set. Received October 23, 2000 / final version received February 5, 2002?Published online May 15, 2002 The work of the first author was partially supported by NSF Grant No. DMS-9800794 The work of the second author was partially supported by NSF Grants No. DMS-9706892 and DMS-0070492     

Liouville nonintegrability of sub-Riemannian problems on free Carnot groups of step 4

One of the main approaches to the study of the Carnot–Carathéodory metrics is the Mitchell–Gromov nilpotent approximation theorem, which reduces the consideration of a neighborhood of a regular point to the study of the left-invariant sub-Riemannian problem on the corresponding Carnot group. A detailed analysis of sub-Riemannian extremals is usually based on the explicit integration of the Hamiltonian system of Pontryagin’s maximum principle. In this paper, the Liouville nonintegrability of this system for left-invariant sub-Riemannian problems on free Carnot groups of step 4 and higher is proved.     

Property (β) implies normal structure of the dual space

We prove that property (β) of Rolewicz implies normal structure of the dual space and we characterize spaces which are duals of spaces with property (β). Research of the second author was supported in part by the M.U.R.S.T. of Italy.     

Some spectral mapping theorems through local spectral theory

The spectral mapping theorems for Browder spectrum and for semi-Browder spectra have been proved by several authors [14], [29] and [33], by using different methods. We shall employ a local spectral argument to establish these spectral mapping theorems, as well as, the spectral mapping theorem relative to some other classical spectra. We also prove that ifT orT* has the single-valued extension property some of the more important spectra originating from Fredholm theory coincide. This result is extended, always in the caseT orT* has the single valued extension property, tof(T), wheref is an analytic function defined on an open disc containing the spectrum ofT. In the last part we improve a recent result of Curto and Han [10] by proving that for every transaloid operatorT a-Weyl’s theorem holds forf(T) andf(T)*. The research was supported by the International Cooperation Project between the University of Palermo (Italy) and Conicit-Venezuela.     

Unimodular eigenvalues and invariant measures for linear operators

For a bounded linear operator in a complex separable Hilbert space we show that it accepts an invariant Borel probability measure of square integrable norm whose essential support spans the space, iff its eigenvectors with unimodular eigenvalues span the space.This research has been supported by the Economic Research Center (KOE) of the Athens University of Economics and Business.     

Critical Gevrey index for hypoellipticity of parabolic operators and Newton polygones

Summary In this paper we give geometrical expressions of the (non) hypoellipticity in Gevrey spaces of parabolic operators via Newton polygones. We also determine the critical Gevrey class for which the hypoellipticity holds.Partially supported by GNAFA, CNR, Italy.Partially supported by JSPS, Japan and a grant MM-410/94 with MES, Bulgaria.Partially supported by Chuo University special research fund.     

Covering spheres of Banach spaces by balls

If the unit sphere of a Banach space X can be covered by countably many balls no one of which contains the origin, then, as an easy consequence of the separation theorem, X* is w*-separable. We prove the converse under suitable renorming. Moreover, the balls of the countable covering can be chosen as translates of the same ball. Research of V. P. Fonf was supported in part by Israel Science Foundation, Grant # 139/02 and by the Istituto Nazionale di Alta Matematica of Italy. Research of C. Zanco was supported in part by the Ministero dell’Università e della Ricerca Scientifica e Tecnologica of Italy and by the Center for Advanced Studies in Mathematics at the Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva, Israel.