The Cheeger constant of curved tubes in real space forms

Abstract

Motivated by the geometric properties of curved tubes $T\left(P,a\right)$ defined by closed curves $P$, we compute the Cheeger constant $h\left(T\left(P,a\right)\right)$ in the real space forms of arbitrary dimensions with constant sectional curvature. The structure and properties of the system of Fermi coordinates allows us to parametrize the curved tube and straightforwardly compute the upper bound of $h\left(T\left(P,a\right)\right)$ using the exact formulas for the area and volume of $T\left(P,a\right)$. Next, we derive the lower bound by combining the geometry of tubes with a calibration-type argument. The key idea is to describe the tube using geodesic spheres moving along the underlying curve $P$, which provides a natural outward direction and makes the estimate geometrically transparent. This allows us to compute the lower bound via the divergence theorem. Finally, for the class of unbounded curved tubes in noncompact real space forms, we also compute the Cheeger constant and prove that there is no finite-volume Cheeger set.