Questions tagged [riemannian-geometry]
Riemannian Geometry is a subfield of Differential Geometry, which specifically studies "Riemannian Manifolds", manifolds with "Riemannian Metrics", which means that they are equipped with continuous inner products.
3,083 questions
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Compactness for initial-to-final map for heat equation
Let $M$ be a compact smooth manifold without boundary. Let $T>0$ and let $g$ be a smooth Riemannian metric on $M$. Given any $f \in L^2(M)$ let $u$ be the unique solution to the equation
$$\...
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Higher homotopy groups of an orbifold
Given an orbifold $\mathcal{O}$, I have seen many ways to define the orbifold fundamental group:
Thinking of $\mathcal{O}$ as a groupoid $\mathcal{G}$, $\pi_1^{orb}(\mathcal{O})$ can be defined as ...
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First eigenvalue of the Laplacian on the traceless-transverse 2-forms
Let $(S^3/\Gamma, g)$ be a spherical space form with constant sectional curvature $1$, where $\Gamma$ is a finite subgroup of $SO(4)$ acting freely on $S^3$.
Consider the first nonzero eigenvalue ...
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Continuation (extension) of harmonic functions
Suppose $(M,g)$ is a simply connected smooth Riemannian manifold with smooth boundary and suppose that $U \subset \partial M$ is a smooth open connected subset of the boundary. Now my question is the ...
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Domain of definition of a certain mapping
Suppose we have a compact smooth riemannian manifold $(M,g)$ and a $\mathcal{C}^2$ diffeomorphism $f$ of this manifold.
I am studying the mapping
$$\tilde{f}(x)= \exp_{f(x)}^{-1} \circ f \circ \exp_x \...
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The best lower bound for isometric immersions
I just read Azov's article in the considered two classes of Riemannian metrics,
\begin{align*}
ds^2&=du_1^2+f(u_1)\sum_{i=2}^ldu_i,&f>0\\
ds^2&=g^2(u_1)\sum_{i=2}^ldu_i^2
,&g>0\...
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Question about Clifford multiplication
Let $X$ be a smooth vector field on the even dimensional sphere $S^n$. Let $S(TS^n)=S^+(TS^n)\oplus S^-(TS^n)$ be the spinor bundle over $S^n$ equipped with a bundle metric that is compatible with the ...
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Are there are any surprising diffeomorphisms?
Two smooth manifolds are often viewed to be equivalent if there is a diffeomorphism between them. Are there examples of two manifolds that one would not expect to be equivalent (in this sense), but in ...
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Many flat totally geodesic surfaces ⇒ flat?
Let $M$ be a 4-dimensional Riemannian manifold.
Assume there is a huge number (say 100) of flat totally geodesic 2-dimensional surfaces
passing through a point $p\in M$ and assume that their tangent ...
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Points where harmonic functions fail to give a coordinates system
Let $\Omega$ be a bounded domain in $\mathbb R^n$ with a smooth boundary and let $g$ be a smooth Riemannian metric on $\Omega$. Let $f_1,f_2,\ldots,f_n$ be non-constant smooth functions on $\partial \...
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Injectivity of map of fundamental groups from totally geodesic hypersurface
Let $X$ be a compact manifold of non-positive sectional curvature which carries a connected totally geodesic hypersurface $X_0\subset X$. Let $K$ be any compact subset of $X-X_0$. That's to say we ...
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On certain umbilic surfaces
Let $(M,g)$ be a three dimensional Lorentzian manifold with signature $(-,+,+)$ and let $p\in M$ and let $U$ be a small neighborhood of $p$. Suppose there is a smooth timelike surface $S$ containing $...
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Bound of the spinor element in Seiberg-Witten equation for a Kähler surface
Let's say we want to solve a perturbed version of SW equations on a closed Kähler manifold $(X,\omega):$
\begin{align*}
&D_A\phi=0\\
&F_A+it\omega=q(\phi)=\phi\otimes\phi^*-\frac{|\phi|^2}{2}\...
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How should you explain parallel transport to undergraduates?
The title is a bit deceiving, because what I really mean is the parallel transport that corresponds to the Levi–Civita connection.
This is in the vein of many other questions on mathoverflow:
What is ...
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Dirichlet-type condition on Riemannian manifold
Let $M$ be a Riemannian manifold and $S \subset M$ a compact submanifold of strictly lower dimension. Does every smooth function on $S$ extend to a harmonic function on a neighborhood of $S$?
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Are smooth functions with compact support a core for the Laplacian on compact manifolds with boundary?
If $M$ is a complete Riemannian manifold and $L$ is the Friedrichs extension of the Laplacian $-\Delta$, then it is known (first proven by Gaffney in the '50) that $C_0 ^\infty (M)$ is a core for $L$. ...
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A question about the choice of a special harmonc spinor
Let $X$ be a complete Riemannian manifold and $H$ be the kernel of generalized Dirac operator $D$ on $L(S)$, where $S$ is the Dirac bundle. Let $K$ be a compact subset of $X$ and $K\subset \Omega$ be ...
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A curve in the bundle of two forms
Let $(M,g)$ be a closed Riemannian manifold. Fix a point $m\in M$ and a $2$-form $\omega$ at $m.$ Take a curve $\gamma$ in $M$ such that $\gamma(0)=m.$ Now we can get a $2$-form along $\gamma$ by ...
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Orthogonal decomposition of $L^2(SM)$
I have been stuck on the following problem for a long time but I could not get the answer. Would you please help me? I was reading one paper [Paternian Salo Uhlmann: Tensor tomography on the surface] ...
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Maximal geodesically convex function interpolating three points on the hyperbolic plane
Crossposted on MSE: https://math.stackexchange.com/questions/4282998/maximal-geodesically-convex-function-interpolating-three-points-on-the-hyperboli
Let $M$ be a two-dimensional Hadamard manifold. ...
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$1$-parameter family of minimal embeddings and the maximum principle
Let $M^3$ be a closed orientable smooth manifold and let $g_t$ be a (smooth) $1$-parameter family of Riemannian metrics on $M$, $t \in \mathbb{R}$. Let $P \subset M$ a fixed closed orientable embedded ...
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Structure of hyperbolic manifolds of finite volume
Let $X$ be a hyperbolic manifold of finite volume.
I want to prove that $X$ has ends of the form $N\times \mathbb{R}$ where $N$ has a finite covering by a nilmanifold and $\pi_1N\to \pi_1 X$ is ...
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Why might the Lawson minimal surface $\xi_{1,2}$ have a Morse index 9?
In page 15 of the article New Applications of Min-max Theory, Andre Neves said that: a wishful thinking would suggest the Lawson minimal surface $\xi_{1,2}$ in the 3-sphere to have a Morse index 9, ...
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Which geometric variational problems admit an entropy identity?
Question. My question in broad terms: when and how can entropy be used in geometric variational contexts to study sequences of critical points, such as the two results described below? [See at the ...
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A counterexample to a conjecture of Lawson
Yau quotes Lawson as having formulated the following conjecture [1]:
Let $M$ be an embedded minimal surface in $\mathbf{S}^3$. Prove that the two domains in $\mathbf{S}^3$ divided by $M$ have equal ...
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Minimal surfaces with increasing area but bounded Morse index
Question. What restrictions are known on closed manifolds $(M^3,g)$ that contain a sequence of embedded minimal surfaces $(\Sigma_j \mid j \in \mathbf{N})$ with
\begin{equation}
\mathrm{area} \, \...
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Scalar curvature and the degree of symmetry
Let $M$ be a closed connected smooth manifold. We define the degree of symmetry of $M$ by $N(M):=\sup_\limits{g}\mathrm{dim}\,\mathrm{Isom}(M,g)$, where $g$ is a smooth Riemannian metric on $M$ and $\...
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Understanding the quadratic part in Seiberg Witten equation
Lets take a closed four manifold $M:=\Sigma_1\times \Sigma_2,$ where $\Sigma_i$s are compact Riemann surfaces. Now if $V$ and $W$ are Spin$^\mathbb{C}$ bundles on $\Sigma_1$ and $\Sigma_2$ ...
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A name for a pseudo-Riemannian manifold that admits no nonzero null vectors
Is there a name for a pseudo-Riemannian manifold that admits no nonzero null vectors? More precisely: For a pseudo-Riemannian manifold $(R,g)$, a null vector is a non-zero vector field $X:M \to TM$ ...
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A local isometric immersion from $\mathbb H^{n}$ into $\mathbb R^{2n-1}$
I found this local isometric immersion from $\mathbb H^{n}$ into $\mathbb R^{2n-1}$, given by Schur (1886) in Über die Deformation der Räume constanten Riemannschen Krümmungsmaasses as follows, $(1\...
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A generalized Dirac operator
Let $(M^4,g)$ be a closed four-dimensional Riemannian manifold and $J$ be an almost complex structure on $M$. Then for normal coordinate $e_1,\dots e_4$ at a point $m,$ and for a section $\alpha$ of a ...
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Is there a non-degenerate solution for this PDE on $\mathbb{R}^3$?
$\newcommand{\tr}{\operatorname{tr}}$
$\newcommand{\R}{\mathbb{R}}$
Does there exist a smooth map $f:\mathbb{R}^3 \to \mathbb{R}^3$, which satisfies
$$\tr \big( df \otimes \delta(df \wedge df) \big)=0,...
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Volume of a geodesic ball in $\operatorname{SL}(n) / {\operatorname{SO}(n)}$?
$\DeclareMathOperator\SL{SL}\DeclareMathOperator\SO{SO}$Crossposted on MSE: https://math.stackexchange.com/questions/4261809/volume-of-a-geodesic-ball-in-sln-son
Question: What is the volume of a ...
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Smooth closed Riemannian manifolds with quasi-analytic metrics
I haven't found a reference for this exact definition in the literature so I wonder if what I want to pose here makes sense. I basically want to consider a smooth close Riemannian manifold that ...
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Fractional Laplacian on closed manifolds
Naturally given any $s\in (0,1)$, the fractional Laplacian, $(-\Delta_g)^s u$ on a closed Riemannian manifold can be defined via spectral decomposition of $-\Delta_g$. There is another formulation of ...
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Maximal geodesic spheres in the "octooctonic projective plane"
Boris Rosenfeld claimed that the 128-dimensional compact Riemannian symmetric space on which $\mathrm{E}_8$ acts as isometries could be seen as the "octooctonionic projective plane", $(\...
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Complete Lorentz metric on (compact) manifolds
Let $M$ be a smooth manifold that is either compact with $\chi(M)=0$ or that is non-compact. Then we can equip $M$ with a Lorentzian metric $g$.
Can we always equip $M$ with a complete Lorentzian ...
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Submanifold of Lie group whose tangent bundle is "almost" left-invariant
Let $G$ be a Lie group equipped with a left-invariant Riemannian metric, and let $M$ be a submanifold of $G$ containing the identity $e\in G$.
It is not difficult to show that, if the tangent bundle $...
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Change of two normal coordinates based on two nearby points?
Let $M$ be a manifold and $L(M)$ be the tangent frame bundle on $M$. Let $\Gamma$ be a linear connection on $L(M)$ which induces a covariant derivative $\nabla$ on $TM$.
Let $p, q$ be two ...
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About Pogorelov-Nadirashvili-Yuan's local isometric embedding counterexample
In Pogorelov's paper "An example of a two-dimensional Riemannian metric admitting no local realization in E3. Dokl. Akad. Nauk SSSR Tom 198(1), 42–43 (1971); English translation in Soviet Math. Dokl. ...
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Where can I find a proof of the main properties of Weyl Curvature for semi-Riemannian manifolds?
Most of the references I've seen deal with Riemannian geometry, rather than semi-Riemannian geometry. Chens monograph, Pseudo-Riemannian Geometry, $\Delta$-Invariants and Applications is one of the ...
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Pull back of Spin$^{\mathbb{C}}$ bundle
Let $M$ be a closed $4$-d Riemannian manifold and $Z$ be its twistor space of $M$, i.e., the bundle of almost complex structures on $M$. Let $V$ be a Spin$^{\mathbb{C}}$ bundle, $V_+$ denote the ...
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Geometric characterization of martingales
Recently I've read a paraphrasing from Ito saying that he sometimes thinks of martingales as geodesics in a very large dimensional manifold.
My question is, is there any research studying this idea?
...
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Do Laplace-Beltrami eigenfunctions vary continuously with the metric?
I'm interested in Laplace Beltrami operators $$-\Delta_g:\ \ D(-\Delta_g) \longrightarrow L^2\left(M,\sqrt{|g|}dx\right)$$
on a smooth compact Riemannian Manifold (M,g). Let us fix a unique metric $...
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Rozendorn's Article
I'm researching the isometric dips of the hyperbolic plane and in particular I'm interested in reading the results of Rozendorn who proved that the hyperbolic plane is isometrically immersed in $\...
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Maps on Riemannian manifold agreeing with geodesics
Let $(M, g)$ be an $n$-dimensional smooth Riemannian manifold. Let
$$ \Gamma_n = \{ [0,1] \ni t \mapsto \gamma_x^y(t) = (1-t)x + ty \mid x, y \in \mathbb{R}^n \}.$$
Let us choose $m \in M$. Can we ...
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The purpose of connections in differential geometry [closed]
I am currently reading through differential geometry as a mathematics graduate.
Can somebody give me a brief explainer on the purpose of connections?
I could also use explainers on differential forms. ...
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Compact connected Riemannian manifolds are Ahlfors regular metric space
Let $(M,g)$ be a compact connected $n$-dimensional Riemannian manifold; let $(X,d)$ denote its associated metric (length) space. A comment on the original formulation of this post mentioned that $(X,...
4
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The range of $\int_M \kappa_g ds$ where $g$ varies in all possible real analytic metrics on $M$
Let $M$ be a real analytic open surface(A non compact 2 dimensional manifold without boundary).
For every number $\lambda\in \mathbb{R}$, is there a real analytic Riemannian metric on $M$ with
$$\...
2
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2
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Invariant description of the Weitzenböck curvature operator by Bourguignon
I recently came across the paper Les variétés de dimension 4 à signature non nulle dont
la courbure est harmonique sont d’Einstein by Jean Pierre Bourguignon. What he shows in §8 is that the ...