Split Quaternionic Analysis and Separation of the Series for SL(2,R) and SL(2,C)/SL(2,R)

Abstract

We extend our previous study of quaternionic analysis based on representation theory to the case of split quaternions H_R. The special role of the unit sphere in the classical quaternions H identified with the group SU(2) is now played by the group SL(2,R) realized by the unit quaternions in H_R. As in the previous work, we use an analogue of the Cayley transform to relate the analysis on SL(2,R) to the analysis on the imaginary Lobachevski space SL(2,C)/SL(2,R) identified with the one-sheeted hyperboloid in the Minkowski space M. We study the counterparts of Cauchy-Fueter and Poisson formulas on H_R and M and show that they solve the problem of separation of the discrete and continuous series. The continuous series component on H_R gives rise to the minimal representation of the conformal group SL(4,R), while the discrete series on M provides its K-types realized in a natural polynomial basis. We also obtain a surprising formula for the Plancherel measure on SL(2,R) in terms of the Poisson integral on the split quaternions H_R. Finally, we show that the massless singular functions of four-dimensional quantum field theory are nothing but the kernels of projectors onto the discrete and continuous series on the imaginary Lobachevski space SL(2,C)/SL(2,R). Our results once again reveal the central role of the Minkowski space in quaternionic and split quaternionic analysis as well as a deep connection between split quaternionic analysis and the four-dimensional quantum field theory.