Question

I am always fascinated when a quadratic form (or a quadric) arises naturally. I have some elementary examples, but most of all, I want to learn more examples. I hope this question isn't considered too vague for MO. Most forms I list are really elementary, and all are finite dimensional.

I got most of the following examples from M.Berger, Geometry I & II, and from the truly beautiful book "Eléments de géométrie : actions de groupes" by french author Rached Meinmné.

$(0)$ the discriminant on the affine space of unitary degre 2 polynomials

$(i)$ the determinant on endomorphisms of a 2 dimensional vector space, and $\mathrm{Tr}^2-4\mathrm{det}$

$(ii)$ the radical on the space of quadratic forms on a 2 dimensional vector space, and the isotrope cone (not sure about the name, degenerate cone?).

$(iii)$ the family of hermitian forms (built from the Wronskian) on the solution space of the discrete Schroedinger equation that allow one to show the existence of right and left side $L^2$ solutions, and the Weyl m function.

$(iv)$ If $\Delta$ is any $2$ dimensional complex vector space, then $\mathrm{Herm}(\Delta)$, the real vector space of hermitian forms on $\Delta$, carries a natural quadratic form obtained by constructing an essentially unique morphism $\rho$ from $\mathrm{Herm}(\Delta)$ to $\mathrm{Hom}(\Delta\oplus\overline{\Delta})$ such that for all $h\in\mathrm{Herm}(\Delta),~\rho(h)^2$ is proportional to $\mathrm{Id}$, the proportionality defining the quadratic form. Here, $\rho$ only depends on a choice of a nonzero element $\omega\in\Lambda^2\Delta^*$.

$(v)$ If $V$ is a 4 dimensional vector space, then $\Lambda^2 V$ carries the natural quadric $Q(v)=v\wedge v$ where $\Lambda^4 V$ is identified with the underlying field, which vanishes exactly when $v$ comes from the canonical map $\mathrm{Gr}(2,V)\rightarrow P\Lambda^2V$.

I remember reading about one on the space of circles, but I forgot the details. What other examples of natural quadratic forms are there?

Answer 1

Dear Olivier, in line with the more advanced nature of this site, let me give an example of a less elementary nature.

Consider a compact Riemann surface $X$ of genus 2 and on it stable vector bundles $E$ of rank 2 whose determinant bundle $\Lambda ^2E$ is isomorphic to some fixed line bundle $L$ of degree $-1$. Newstead has proved that the moduli space of those vector bundles is the intersection of two quadrics in five-dimesional projective space $\mathbb P^5(\mathbb C)$. And one of those quadrics is the Klein quadric in $\mathbb P^5(\mathbb C)$ parametrizing the lines in some three-dimensional projective space canonically associated to $X$ and $L$. (A Klein quadric is the quadric you mention in number (v) of your list.)

References
P E. Newstead Stable bundles of rank 2 and odd degree over a curve of genus 2, Topology 7 (1968), 205-215.
For a geometric description including the role of the Klein quadric, see:
M. S. Narasimhan and S. Ramanan Moduli of Vector Bundles on a Compact Riemann Surface, Annals of Mathematics, Vol. 89, No. 1, 1969 , pp. 14-51.

Answer 2

Perhaps too trivial an example; the fixed points of a (non-intentity) Mobius transform.