On causality and closed geodesics of compact Lorentzian manifolds and static spacetimes

Some results related to the causality of compact Lorentzian manifolds are proven: (1) any compact Lorentzian manifold which admits a timelike conformal vector field is totally vicious, and (2) a compact Lorentzian manifold covered regularly by a globally hyperbolic spacetime admits a timelike closed geodesic, if some natural topological assumptions (fulfilled, for example, if one of the conjugacy classes of deck transformations containing a closed timelike curve is finite) hold. As a consequence, any compact Lorentzian manifold conformal to a static spacetime is geodesically connected by causal geodesics, and admits a timelike closed geodesic.     

Lightlike rays in stationary spacetimes with critical growth

The aim of this paper is to extend some previous results on the existence of lightlike geodesics joining a point to a line to the case of stationary Lorentzian manifolds whose metric coefficients have an optimal growth.     

Geodesics in stationary spacetimes and classical Lagrangian systems

We state a fundamental correspondence between geodesics on stationary spacetimes and the equations of classical particles on Riemannian manifolds, accelerated by a potential and a magnetic field. By variational methods, we prove some existence and multiplicity theorems for fixed energy solutions (joining two points or periodic) of the above described Riemannian equation. As a consequence, we obtain existence and multiplicity results for geodesics with fixed energy, connecting a point to a line or periodic trajectories, in (standard) stationary spacetimes.     

Quadratic Bolza Problems in Static Spacetimes with Critical Asymptotic Behavior

The aim of this paper is to investigate the existence of trajectories under the action of an external field in a (standard) static spacetime when both the growth of the potential and that one of the coefficient of the metric are critical. Supported by M.I.U.R. (research funds ex 40% and 60%).     

Harmonic Hopf constructions and isoparametric gradient maps

This note provides a complete answer to a problem of Ding-Fan-Li on the homotopy classes of harmonic Hopf constructions. Moreover, it gives applications to isoparametric gradient maps.     

On constant mean curvature hypersurfaces with finite index

We discuss the non-existence of complete noncompact constant mean curvature hypersurfaces with finite index in a 4- or 5-dimensional manifold. As a consequence, we obtain that a complete noncompact constant mean curvature hypersurface in with finite index must be minimal. Received: 30 May 2005     

Minimal submanifolds of hyperbolic spaces via harmonic morphisms

In this paper we give a method for constructing complete minimal submanifolds of the hyperbolic spaces H ^m . They are regular fibres of harmonic morphisms from H ^m with values in Riemann surfaces.     

Harmonic maps from closed Riemannian manifolds with positive scalar curvature

It is well known there is no non-constant harmonic map from a closed Riemannian manifold of positive Ricci curvature to a complete Riemannian manifold with non-positive sectional curvature. By reducing the assumption on the Ricci curvature to one on the scalar curvature, such vanishing theorem cannot hold in general. This raises the question: “What information can we obtain from the existence of non-constant harmonic map?” This paper gives answer to this problem; the results obtained are optimal.     

Stability numbers in K-contact manifolds

The aim of this paper is to study the stability of the characteristic vector field of a compact K-contact manifold with respect to the energy and volume functionals when we consider on the manifold a two-parameter variation of the metric. First of all, we multiply the metric in the direction of the characteristic vector field by a constant and then we change the metric by homotheties. We will study to what extent the results obtained in [V. Borrelli, Stability of the characteristic vector field of a Sasakian manifold, Soochow J. Math. 30 (2004) 283-292. Erratum on the article: Stability of the characteristic vector field of a Sasakian manifold, Soochow J. Math. 32 (2006) 179-180] for Sasakian manifolds are valid for a general K-contact manifold. Finally, as an example, we will study the stability of Hopf vector fields on Berger spheres when we consider homotheties of Berger metrics.     

Liouville theorem for harmonic maps with potential

LetM, N be complete manifolds,u:M →N be a harmonic map with potentialH, namely, a critical point of the functionalE _H (u)=∫ _M [e(u) − H(u)], wheree(u) is the energy density ofu. We will give a Liouville theorem foru with a class of potentialsH’s. Research supported in part by NNSFC, SFECC and NSFCCNU.     

Maximal surfaces in a certain 3-dimensional homogeneous spacetime

A generalized integral representation formula for spacelike maximal surfaces in a certain 3-dimensional homogeneous spacetime is obtained. This spacetime has a solvable Lie group structure with left invariant metric. The normal Gauß map of maximal surfaces in the homogeneous spacetime is discussed and the harmonicity of the normal Gauß map is studied.     

Harmonic sections of Riemannian vector bundles, and metrics of Cheeger-Gromoll type

We study harmonic sections of a Riemannian vector bundle E→M when E is equipped with a 2-parameter family of metrics hp,q which includes both the Sasaki and Cheeger-Gromoll metrics. For every k>0 there exists a unique p such that the harmonic sections of the radius-k sphere subbundle are harmonic sections of E with respect to hp,q for all q. In both compact and non-compact cases, Bernstein regions of the (p,q)-plane are identified, where the only harmonic sections of E with respect to hp,q are parallel. Examples are constructed of vector fields which are harmonic sections of E=TM in the case where M is compact and has non-zero Euler characteristic.     

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.     

Lorentzian geometry of globally framed manifolds

A new class of globally framed manifolds (carrying a Lorentz metric) is introduced to establish a relation between the spacetime geometry and framed structures. We show that strongly causal (in particular, globally hyperbolic) spacetimes can carry a regular framed structure. As examples, we present a class of spacetimes of general relativity, having an electromagnetic field, endowed with a framed structure and a causal spacetime with a nonregular contact structure. This paper opens a few new problems, of geometric/physical significance, for further study.     

Harmonic bundle solutions of topological-antitopological fusion in para-complex geometry

In this work we introduce the notion of a para-harmonic bundle, i.e. the generalization of a harmonic bundle [C.T. Simpson, Higgs-bundles and local systems, Inst. Hautes Etudes Sci. Publ. Math. 75 (1992) 5-95] to para-complex differential geometry. We show that para-harmonic bundles are solutions of the para-complex version of metric tt^∗-bundles introduced in [L. Schäfer, tt^∗-bundles in para-complex geometry, special para-Kähler manifolds and para-pluriharmonic maps, Differential Geom. Appl. 24 (1) (2006) 60-89]. Further we analyze the correspondence between metric para-tt^∗-bundles of rank 2r over a para-complex manifold M and para-pluriharmonic maps from M into the pseudo-Riemannian symmetric space GL(r,R)/O(p,q), which was shown in [L. Schäfer, tt^∗-bundles in para-complex geometry, special para-Kähler manifolds and para-pluriharmonic maps, Differential Geom. Appl. 24 (1) (2006) 60-89], in the case of a para-harmonic bundle. It is proven, that for para-harmonic bundles the associated para-pluriharmonic maps take values in the totally geodesic subspace GL(r,C)/Uπ(Cr) of GL(2r,R)/O(r,r). This defines a map Φ from para-harmonic bundles over M to para-pluriharmonic maps from M to GL(r,C)/Uπ(Cr). The image of Φ is also characterized in the paper.     

On the second best constant in logarithmic Sobolev inequalities on complete Riemannian manifolds

We study the second best constant problem for logarithmic Sobolev inequalities on complete Riemannian manifolds and investigate its relationship with optimal heat kernel bounds and the existence of extremal functions.     

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.     

On the volume of unit vector fields on spaces of constant sectional curvature

A unit vector field X on a Riemannian manifold determines a submanifold in the unit tangent bundle. The volume of X is the volume of this submanifold for the induced Sasaki metric. It is known that the parallel fields are the trivial minima. In this paper, we obtain a lower bound for the volume in terms of the integrals of the 2i-symmetric functions of the second fundamental form of the orthogonal distribution to the field X. In the spheres ${\textbf {S}}^{2k+1}$, this lower bound is independent of X. Consequently, the volume of a unit vector field on an odd-sphere is always greater than the volume of the radial field. The main theorem on volumes is applied also to hyperbolic compact spaces, giving a non-trivial lower bound of the volume of unit fields.     

Nonpositive curvature: A geometrical approach to Hilbert-Schmidt operators

We give a Riemannian structure to the set Σ of positive invertible unitized Hilbert-Schmidt operators, by means of the trace inner product. This metric makes of Σ a nonpositively curved, simply connected and metrically complete Hilbert manifold. The manifold Σ is a universal model for symmetric spaces of the noncompact type: any such space can be isometrically embedded into Σ. We give an intrinsic algebraic characterization of convex closed submanifolds M. We study the group of isometries of such submanifolds: we prove that GM, the Banach-Lie group generated by M, acts isometrically and transitively on M. Moreover, GM admits a polar decomposition relative to M, namely GM?M×K as Hilbert manifolds (here K is the isotropy of p=1 for the action ), and also GM/K?M so M is an homogeneous space. We obtain several decomposition theorems by means of geodesically convex submanifolds M. These decompositions are obtained via a nonlinear but analytic orthogonal projection , a map which is a contraction for the geodesic distance. As a byproduct, we prove the isomorphism NM?Σ (here NM stands for the normal bundle of a convex closed submanifold M). Writing down the factorizations for fixed ea, we obtain ea=exevex with ex∈M and v orthogonal to M at p=1. As a corollary we obtain decompositions for the full group of invertible elements G?M×exp(T₁M^⊥)×K.