Questions tagged [contact-geometry]

Contact manifolds, contact structures, contact forms, Reeb dynamics, Legendrian knots, contact homology, symplectic field theory

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Ricci soliton on contact manifolds

Recently I am studying Ricci flow and its self-similar solution called Ricci soliton. In this respect I found some papers which focuses Ricci soliton in the setting of various kind of contact ...
debabrata chakraborty's user avatar
2 votes
0 answers
210 views

contact structure on double branched covers of $S^3$

We can assign a natural contact structure to double branched cover of a transverse knot $k$ in the $3$-sphere with its standard contact structure $(S^3,\xi_{st})$, as described in:http://arxiv.org/pdf/...
nikita's user avatar
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4 votes
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contact surgery diagram on Brieskorn manifolds

For the Brieskorn manifold $\Sigma(p,q,r)=\{z_1^p+z_2^q+z_3^r=0\} \cap S^5 \subset C^3$, replacing zero with $\epsilon$ in the above, realizes $\Sigma$ as boundary of a Stein domain which induces a ...
nikita's user avatar
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1 vote
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Smoothness of the twistor space of a lorentzian manifold, or “convexity wrt null geodesics”

Null lines in Minkowski space form a 5-dimensional manifold, represented as a (real) quadric $\mathbf{PN}\subset\mathbb{C}\mathbf{P}^3$. This is a well-known fact, on which R. Penrose’s twistor ...
Incnis Mrsi's user avatar
4 votes
1 answer
218 views

Are all bidimensional second-order PDE at most quadratic in the top derivatives of Monge-Ampère type?

The general Monge-Ampère equation in $n$ independent variables is a quasi-linear combination of all the possible minors of the $n\times n$ Hessian matrix $$ \left\|\frac{\partial^2u}{\partial x^i\...
Giovanni Moreno's user avatar
7 votes
1 answer
460 views

Homology 3-sphere with a unique Stein-fillable contact structure

Are there any known examples of oriented integer homology 3-spheres $Y$ (besides $S^3$) which have exactly one Stein-fillable contact structure up to isotopy? Failing that, what are the known examples ...
PVAL's user avatar
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3 votes
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Non-vanishing contact vector field transverse to contact codimension-2 submanifold with trivial normal bundle?

So, I have a codimension 2 contact submanifold of a closed contact manifold which has (topologically) trivial normal bundle. The question is, can I find a non-vanishing contact vector field which ...
Agustín Moreno's user avatar
16 votes
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326 views

Is tightness decidable?

Given a contact structure on a three-manifold, is there an algorithm to decide whether or not it tight? For concreteness' sake, let's agree to represent the given contact three-manifold via an open ...
John Pardon's user avatar
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4 votes
1 answer
286 views

Non-degenerate periodic orbits in the boundary of Lefschetz fibration over a disk

Suppose that $\pi:E \to D$ is a 4-dimensional Lefschetz fibration over a disk, and let $\Omega$ be a closed 2-form on $E$ such that it is non-degenerate fiberwise. For any $x \in E$, there is a ...
Trick1234's user avatar
4 votes
2 answers
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Legendrian knot in 3-sphere

We are given a Legendrian knot, fixed up to Legendrian isotopy, in $(S^3,\xi)$ ($\xi$ is the standard contact structure). Does it necessarily bound a symplectic surface in $(B^4,\omega)$ (again $\...
nikita's user avatar
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9 votes
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Schoenflies and symplectic topology

The final report from a workshop on Morse theory in low-dimensional and symplectic topology includes the following question, posed by Michael Hutchings: Can we apply symplectic geometry to solve the ...
Kyle Hayden's user avatar
2 votes
1 answer
293 views

What is the "type" of a contact vector field?

Let $(M,\theta)$ be a $(2n+1)$-dimensional contact manifold, $\mathcal{C}=\ker\theta$ the contact distribution, and $X\in\mathcal{C}$ a vector field belonging to $\mathcal{C}$. In a couple of minor ...
Giovanni Moreno's user avatar
2 votes
1 answer
198 views

Symplectic (contact) structure on $M_{n}(\mathbb{R})$

Assume that $n$ is an even number. What is a natural symplectic structure on $M_{n}(\mathbb{R})$, such that for every $1\leq k \leq n$ the manifold of $k$-rank matrices would be invariant under ...
Ali Taghavi's user avatar
3 votes
2 answers
1k views

Boundary geometry of a contact manifold

Let $(M, \xi = \text{ker}\,\alpha)$ be a compact contact manifold with non-empty boundary. Vaguely asked, is there any natural geometric structure on the boundary $\partial M$ induced from the contact ...
Oldřich Spáčil's user avatar
4 votes
2 answers
1k views

Modifying the Reeb vector field by multplying by a function

Given a contact 3-manifold $(M,\omega)$ and its Reeb vector field $R$ and contact structure $\Delta$, I want to understand in some sense 'how large' is the set of Reeb vector fields supported by $\...
Avicenna's user avatar
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Regularity of the taut foliation

In Eliashberg-Thurston's famous paper "Confoliations" Corollary 3.2.11, they proved that Irreducible three manifold with $b_{1}>0$ admits semi-fillable contact structure using Gabai's theorem in ...
user44651's user avatar
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1 vote
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why is there such a 1-form on a planar open book?

Suppose $B$ is the binding (with more than one component) of a planar open book on a 3-manifold $Y$ and let $L\subset B$ be the complement of a single component of the binding. Now we perform page-...
nikita's user avatar
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5 votes
1 answer
454 views

Are there spaces in which there are no fibered knots?

I am looking for orientable closed 3-manifolds in which there are no fibered knots. Although I know little about this, I think for links the answer to the question above is "no", and the result is ...
shestipalov's user avatar
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5 votes
1 answer
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Is there a known Legendrian simple link?

Several knots like unknot, $4_1$, $3_1$ are known to be Legendrian simple, i.e., Thurston-Bennequin number and rotation number determine Legendrian type completely. How about the same notion for link ...
Seonhwa  Kim's user avatar
1 vote
1 answer
254 views

Reeb orbit and open books

Weinstein conjecture is about existence of a closed orbit of the Reeb vector field on every contact manifold. On the other hand, we know every contact 3-manifold admits a compatible open book, which ...
nikita's user avatar
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1 vote
1 answer
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Symplectic Submanifolds of Contact Manifolds and Contact Submanifolds of Symplectic Manifolds

We know every contact manifold admits a symplectic submanifold, e.g., by Giroux's bijection : if $\omega$ is a contact form for a 3-manifold $M^3$ , then $d \omega$ is symplectic on the fibers of the ...
Contactyc's user avatar
5 votes
1 answer
674 views

Generalization of Giroux's Theorem for Higher Dimensions?

Just wanted to know if Giroux's theorem for 3-dimensional contact manifolds can be generalized: In contact geometry for manifolds of dimension 3 , we have Giroux's theorem , stating that for any ...
Guest's user avatar
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3 votes
1 answer
330 views

Embedded Contact Homology and Manifold Decompositions

Embedded Contact Homology (ECH) defines an invariant for contact 3 manifolds. It does this by considering certain J-holomorphic curves in $\mathbb R\times Y$ and "counting" them. In the symplectic ...
joe's user avatar
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6 votes
0 answers
586 views

Gompf's invariant of $2$-plane fields

I am interested in low dimensional contact topology. These days I read "Handlebody construction of Stein surfaces" written by R. E. Gompf, and study an invariant $\theta (\xi)$. This invariant is ...
Math1016's user avatar
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3 votes
2 answers
313 views

non-isotopic but homotopic tight contact structure

By a theorem of Eliashberg, two overtwisted contact structures on a 3-manifold which belong to the same homotopy class (as plane fields), are also isotopic (through contact structures). Is there an ...
nikita's user avatar
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1 vote
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100 views

This weaker version of CR-structure: is it studied somewhere

When I study 5-dimensional $\mathcal{N} = 1$ supersymmetry, I came across such structure as follows. $(R, \kappa, \Phi, M)$ is an almost contact 5-manifold, such that \begin{equation} \kappa \...
Lelouch's user avatar
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14 votes
3 answers
2k views

Is there a "unique" homogeneous contact structure on odd-dimensional spheres?

Let $S^{2n-1}\subset\mathbb{C}^{n}$, and denote by $\langle\,\cdot\,,\,\cdot\,\rangle$ the Hermitian product. Then $$ \mathcal{C}_p:=\{\xi\in T_pS^{2n-1}\mid\langle p,\xi\rangle=0\},\quad p\in S^{2n-1}...
Giovanni Moreno's user avatar
11 votes
2 answers
518 views

The importance of differentiable dynamics from outside dynamics? (mainly topology)

I'm looking for examples that highlight how dynamical systems (particularly, Hamiltonian and Reeb dynamics) can be used to shed light in other areas of mathematics. This could potentially include ...
Juan OS's user avatar
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3 votes
1 answer
176 views

Legendrian knots on pages of a compatible open book

Suppose we have a Legendrian knot embedded on a page of an open book compatible with the given contact structure on the 3-manifold. Is it true that the page framing and Thurston-Bennequin framing of ...
nikita's user avatar
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2 votes
1 answer
508 views

Meaning of " Open Book cannot be Stabilized Further"?

I'm going over some old notes on Giroux's theorem on the equivalence ( bijection, actually) between open books ( up to positive stabilization) for 3-manifolds and contact structures ( up to isotopy.) ...
Guest's user avatar
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1 vote
1 answer
140 views

Factor of 2 In the Definition of Metric Contact Structure

In Blair's book and many many literatures, I see definition of a contact metric manifold which involves a relation \begin{equation} d\kappa \left( {X,Y} \right) = g\left( {X,\Phi Y} \right) \end{...
Lelouch's user avatar
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3 votes
1 answer
209 views

3d-analog of "every 2d oriented manifold is complex"

Is there an analog of the statement of "every 2d oriented surface is a complex manifold"? I saw a theorem in Blair's book, that "every 3d contact metric manifold is a strongly pseudo convex CR ...
Lelouch's user avatar
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0 votes
0 answers
72 views

a section invariant under Reeb flow

Let $M$ be a compact contact manifold with $R$ the Reeb vector field. Let $E$ be some vector bundle of gauge group $G$, say, $G = SU(2)$ and $E$ is the adjoint vector bundle. So my question is: If $\...
Lelouch's user avatar
  • 857
3 votes
1 answer
352 views

Extending Reeb field from contact submanifold to ambient contact manifold

Let $(Y,\lambda)$ be a contact manifold, with a codimension-2 contact submanifold $(S,\lambda|_S)$ (this requires $TS\pitchfork\text{Ker}\lambda$). On $Y$ there is a natural vector field, the Reeb ...
Chris Gerig's user avatar
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1 vote
1 answer
185 views

contact metric structure on squashed spheres

My goal to write down an explicit (and simplest) contact metric structure on squashed $S_\omega^{2n + 1}$ defined as \begin{equation} S_\omega ^{2n + 1} = \left\{ {\left( {{z_i}} \right) \in \...
Lelouch's user avatar
  • 857
4 votes
1 answer
410 views

Comparing Contact Structures: What do we Mean when we Say that two Contact Structures are Homotopic/Eliashbergs Class. of OT structures

Please forgive me if this is too simple for MO; most of my posts on anything contact-structure-related in Math Stack, other sites, have barely received answers (maybe because I'm not an expert in the ...
Kontakt's user avatar
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4 votes
0 answers
459 views

Transversality in Bourgeois Oancea's non-equivariant contact homology

In their paper, "AN EXACT SEQUENCE FOR CONTACT- AND SYMPLECTIC HOMOLOGY", Bourgeois and Oancea defined, whenever there is sufficient transversality, a "non-equivariant contact homology". Essentially, ...
user36931's user avatar
  • 1,331
1 vote
0 answers
133 views

Contact structures transverse to a given line bundle

Let $M$ be an orientable $3$-dimensional manifold with a $1$-dimensional continuous distribution $F$ (i.e a $1$-dimensional subbundle of $TM$). It is known that every orientable $3$-dimensional ...
Avicenna's user avatar
  • 419
2 votes
0 answers
86 views

Extendability of Contact Structures; Foliations of $S^2$

I am currently reading Eliashberg's paper on the classification of overtwisted contact structures (http://bogomolov-lab.ru/G-sem/eliashberg-tight-overtwisted.pdf). In it, there is the following ...
Guest's user avatar
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4 votes
1 answer
1k views

How to compute Conley-Zehnder indices on prequantization spaces?

My question is pretty much as in the title. On page 100 of his thesis, Bourgeois gives a computation of the CZ(or I suppose more correctly this is the Robbin-Salamon index) index of the Reeb orbits ...
Daniel Pomerleano's user avatar
6 votes
1 answer
263 views

Determining Tightness/Overtwistedness of Contact Structure using Lift of Structure to the Universal Cover

All: I would appreciate any ideas, refs., etc. on the following: Let $M^3$ be a contact 3-manifold, and let $X$ be its universal cover. Then the contact structure, say $\eta$ on $M^3$ lifts to a ...
Jerry's user avatar
  • 63
5 votes
2 answers
590 views

Automorphisms of surfaces, open books and contact structures

Let $S$ be a surface with non-empty boundary $\partial S$ and let $f$ be an element of $\mathrm{MCG}(S)$, the mapping class group of $S$, i.e., the group of self-diffeomorphisms of $S$ up to isotopy,...
OBD's user avatar
  • 51
1 vote
1 answer
190 views

Group of CR automorphisms

Let $(M, D, J)$ be a strictly pseudoconvex hypersurface type CR manifold with $J$ integrable. Let $D$ be the kernel of a $1$-form $\eta_0$. As known the automorphism group is defined to be $$ CR = \{ \...
David P's user avatar
  • 575
7 votes
1 answer
220 views

Why is the dividing set nonempty when a convex surface has Legendrian boundary?

I am an undergrad and curious about the following question. Let $(Y,\xi)$ be a contact manifold, and $L\subset (Y,\xi)$ be a Legendrian knot which is the boundary of a convex surface $\Sigma$ embedded ...
contakto's user avatar
5 votes
1 answer
560 views

Is there a Legendrian Neighbourhood Theorem also for non-cooriented contact manifolds?

Context According to Arnol'd, a contact structure on a smooth manifold $M$ is given by a corank 1 tangent distribution $C$ which is maximally non-integrable; this means that, for any local $1$-form ...
agt's user avatar
  • 4,246
2 votes
1 answer
757 views

pre-quantization of Jet bundle

We know that the notion of Jet bundle $J^kM×\mathbb{R}$, is generalization of cotangent bundle. What is the prequantization of $J^kM×\mathbb{R}$?
user avatar
3 votes
2 answers
1k views

Legendrian Tubular Neighborhood Theorem

Given a Lagrangian submanifold $L\subset(M,\omega)$ of a symplectic manifold, we have Alan Weinstein's celebrated Lagrangian tubular neighborhood theorem. I now look for the analog on Legendrian ...
Chris Gerig's user avatar
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1 vote
0 answers
213 views

Classification of (almost) contact structures on $S^3$

Question: Is there a classification of almost contact or contact structures on $S^3$? What is it and references? The motivation of this question is as follows: (1) There is one paper showing that a ...
Lelouch's user avatar
  • 857
2 votes
2 answers
725 views

question on Thurston-Bennequin number

I have three questions actually: 1- is it true that in a sufficiently small neighborhood of Legendrian knot in a 3-manifold we can find another Legendrian knot? 2- If the above is true, suppose we ...
nikita's user avatar
  • 1,335
6 votes
1 answer
813 views

Shortest geodesic loop vs. shortest periodic geodesic

Are there simple conditions on a Riemannian metric on the two-sphere that imply that a geodesic loop of minimal length is actually a periodic geodesic? For example, is this true for small ...
alvarezpaiva's user avatar
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