Let $S$ be a smooth closed connected hyperbolic surface. On $S$ we have the Laplace operator $\Delta$, whose eigenvalues form a discrete sequence \begin{equation} 0=\lambda_0<\lambda_1\leq \lambda_2\leq ... \leq \lambda_k\nearrow\infty \end{equation} To my knowledge, a generic surface will not have eigenvalues of multiplicity $>1$ (this is a result of K.Uhlenbeck, see https://www.jstor.org/stable/2374041). On the other hand, any surface with degenerate eigenvalues (such as the Bolza surface or Klein quartic), which I am aware of, usually has a lot of symmetries (in the sense that the automorphism group of $S$ is large), which cause the high multiplicities. Are there any known inverse results of the type "If a hyperbolic surface $S$ has an eigenvalue of multiplicity >1, then it has non-trivial automorphism group". I was unable to spot any related results in the literature, so I want to to ask whether there is anything known in this direction or if there are any examples of hyperbolic surfaces violating this idea.
Multiplicity of Laplace eigenvalues and symmetry
Claudius
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