arXiv subjects

Alena Erchenko

Publications and source records attributed to Alena Erchenko.

15 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Flexibility of eigenvalues for graph Laplacians arising from genus 3 surfaces

It is known that the small eigenvalues of the Laplacian of a Riemann surface close to the boundary of the modular space can be well approximated by the eigenvalues of the discrete Laplacian on a certain graph coming from the pair of pants decomposition of the surface. In this paper, we provide a complete description of the sets of eigenvalues of the weighted graph Laplacian for all graphs on four vertices that correspond to a valid pair of pants decomposition of a surface of genus 3.

math.SP↗

arXiv2025

Normal forms in a neighborhood of hyperbolic periodic orbits for flows in dimension 3

In a neighborhood of a hyperbolic periodic orbit of a volume-preserving flow on a manifold of dimension 3, we define and show the existence of a normal form for the generator of the flow that encodes the dynamics. If the flow is a contact flow, we show the existence of a normal form for the contact form what results in an improved normal form for its Reeb vector field. Additionally, we present a few rigidity results associated to periodic data for Anosov contact flows derived from the underlying normal form theory. Finally, we establish a new local rigidity result for contact flows on manifolds of dimension 3 in a neighborhood of a hyperbolic periodic point by finding a new link between the roof function and the return map to a section.

math.DS↗

arXiv2025

Monotonicity of topological entropy along the Ricci flow near a hyperbolic metric

In 2004, Manning showed that the topological entropy of the geodesic flow of a closed surface of non-constant negative curvature is strictly decreasing along the normalized Ricci flow, and he asked if an analogous result holds in higher dimensions for metrics in a neighborhood of a hyperbolic metric. In this paper, we affirmatively answer this question. Namely, we show that the topological entropy of the geodesic flow of a closed Riemannian manifold that carries a hyperbolic metric is indeed strictly decreasing along the normalized Ricci flow starting from a metric of variable negative sectional curvature sufficiently close to the hyperbolic metric.

math.DG↗

arXiv2025

Marked Poincar\'e rigidity near hyperbolic metrics and injectivity of the Lichnerowicz Laplacian in dimension 3

Let $M$ be a compact manifold without boundary equipped with a Riemannian metric $g$ of negative curvature. In this paper, we introduce the marked Poincar\'e determinant (MPD), a homothety invariant of $g$ depending on differentiable periodic data of its geodesic flow. The MPD associates to each free homotopy class of closed curves in $M$ a number which measures the unstable volume expansion of the geodesic flow along the associated closed geodesic. We prove a local MPD rigidity result in dimension 3: if $g$ is sufficiently close to a hyperbolic metric $g_0$ and both metrics have the same MPD, then they are homothetic. As a by-product of our proof, we show the Lichnerowicz Laplacian of $g_0$ is injective on the space of trace-free divergence-free symmetric 2-tensors, which, to our knowledge, is the first result of its kind in negative curvature.

math.DG↗

arXiv2025

Monotonicity of the Liouville entropy along the Ricci flow on surfaces

We show that the Liouville entropy of the geodesic flow of a closed surface of non-constant negative curvature is eventually strictly increasing along the normalized Ricci flow (NRF). More precisely, we obtain a new expression for the derivative of the Liouville entropy along an arbitrary conformal deformation in dimension 2, and we prove it is positive in the direction of the NRF for 1/6-pinched metrics. This partially answers a question of Manning from 2004. In addition, we show that the mean root curvature, a purely geometric quantity which is a lower bound for the Liouville entropy, is strictly increasing along the NRF starting from any metric of non-constant negative curvature.

math.DS↗

arXiv2024

Local product structure for equilibrium states of geodesic flows and applications

Let $S$ be a compact surface of genus $\geq 2$ equipped with a metric that is flat everywhere except at finitely many cone points with angles greater than $2\pi$. We examine the geodesic flow on $S$ and prove local product structure for a wide class of equilibrium states. Using this, we establish the Bernoulli property for these systems. We also establish local product structure for a similar class of equilibrium states for geodesic flows on rank 1, nonpositively curved manifolds.

math.DS↗

arXiv2023

Marked boundary rigidity for surfaces of Anosov type

Let $\Sigma$ be a smooth compact connected oriented surface with boundary. A metric on $\Sigma$ is said to be of Anosov type if it has strictly convex boundary, no conjugate points, and a hyperbolic trapped set. We prove that two metrics of Anosov type with the same marked boundary distance are isometric (via a boundary-preserving isometry isotopic to the identity). As a corollary, we retrieve the boundary distance rigidity result for simple disks of Pestov and Uhlmann [arXiv:math/0305280]. The proof rests on a new transfer principle showing that, in any dimension, the marked length spectrum rigidity conjecture implies the marked boundary distance rigidity conjecture under the existence of a suitable isometric embedding into a closed Anosov manifold. Such an isometric embedding result for open surfaces of Anosov type was proved by the first author with Chen and Gogolev in [arXiv:2009.13665] while the marked length spectrum rigidity for closed Anosov surfaces was established by the second author with Guillarmou and Paternain in [arXiv:2303.12007].

math.DG↗

arXiv2021

Unique equilibrium states for geodesic flows on flat surfaces with singularities

Consider a compact surface of genus $\geq 2$ equipped with a metric that is flat everywhere except at finitely many cone points with angles greater than $2\pi$. Following the technique in the work of Burns, Climenhaga, Fisher, and Thompson, we prove that sufficiently regular potential functions have unique equilibrium states if the singular set does not support the full pressure. Moreover, we show that the pressure gap holds for any potential which is locally constant on a neighborhood of the singular set. Finally, we establish that the corresponding equilibrium states have the $K$-property, and closed regular geodesics equidistribute.

math.DS↗

arXiv2020

Riemannian Anosov extension and applications

Let $\Sigma$ be a Riemannian manifold with strictly convex spherical boundary. Assuming absence of conjugate points and that the trapped set is hyperbolic, we show that $\Sigma$ can be isometrically embedded into a closed Riemannian manifold with Anosov geodesic flow. We use this embedding to provide a direct link between the classical Livshits theorem for Anosov flows and the Livshits theorem for the X-ray transform which appears in the boundary rigidity program. Also, we give an application for lens rigidity in a conformal class.

math.DG↗

arXiv2019

Flexibility of Lyapunov exponents with respect to two classes of measures on the torus

We consider a smooth area-preserving Anosov diffeomorphism $f\colon \mathbb T^2\rightarrow \mathbb T^2$ homotopic to an Anosov automorphism $L$ of $\mathbb T^2$. It is known that the positive Lyapunov exponent of $f$ with respect to the normalized Lebesgue measure is less than or equal to the topological entropy of $L$, which, in addition, is less than or equal to the Lyapunov exponent of $f$ with respect to the probability measure of maximal entropy. Moreover, the equalities only occur simultaneously. We show that these are the only restrictions on these two dynamical invariants.

math.DS↗

arXiv2019

Geometry and entropies in a fixed conformal class on surfaces

We show the flexibility of the metric entropy and obtain additional restrictions on the topological entropy of geodesic flow on closed surfaces of negative Euler characteristic with smooth non-positively curved Riemannian metrics with fixed total area in a fixed conformal class. Moreover, we obtain a collar lemma, a thick-thin decomposition, and precompactness for the considered class of metrics. Also, we extend some of the results to metrics of fixed total area in a fixed conformal class with no focal points and with some integral bounds on the positive part of the Gaussian curvature.

math.DS↗

arXiv2017

Exceptional directions for the Teichm\"{u}ller geodesic flow and Hausdorff dimension

We prove that for every flat surface $\omega$, the Hausdorff dimension of the set of directions in which Teichm\"{u}ller geodesics starting from $\omega$ exhibit a definite amount of deviation from the correct limit in Birkhoff's and Oseledets' Theorems is strictly less than $1$. This theorem extends a result by Chaika and Eskin where they proved that such sets have measure $0$. We also prove that the Hausdorff dimension of the directions in which Teichm\"{u}ller geodesics diverge on average in a stratum is bounded above by $1/2$, strengthening a classical result due to Masur. Moreover, we show that the Hausdorff codimension of the set of non-weakly mixing IETs with permutation $(d, d-1, \dots, 1)$, where $d$ is an odd number, is exactly $1/2$ and strengthen a result by Avila and Leguil.

math.DS↗

arXiv2017

Flexibility of entropies for surfaces of negative curvature

We consider a smooth closed surface $M$ of fixed genus $\geqslant 2$ with a Riemannian metric $g$ of negative curvature with fixed total area. The second author has shown that the topological entropy of geodesic flow for $g$ is greater than or equal to the topological entropy for the metric of constant negative curvature on $M$ with the same total area which is greater than or equal to the metric entropy with respect to the Liouville measure of geodesic flow for $g$. Equality holds only in the case of constant negative curvature. We prove that those are the only restrictions on the values of topological and metric entropies for metrics of negative curvature.

math.DS↗

arXiv2017

Flexibility of geometrical and dynamical data in fixed conformal classes

Consider a smooth closed surface $M$ of fixed genus $\geqslant 2$ with a hyperbolic metric $\sigma$ of total area $A$. In this article, we study the behavior of geometric and dynamical characteristics (e.g., diameter, Laplace spectrum, Gaussian curvature and entropies) of nonpositively curved smooth metrics with total area $A$ conformally equivalent to $\sigma$. For such metrics, we show that the diameter is bounded above and the Laplace spectrum is bounded below away from zero by constants which depend on $\sigma$. On the other hand, we prove that the metric entropy of the geodesic flow with respect to the Liouville measure is flexible. Consequently, we also provide the first known example showing that the bottom of the $L^2$-spectrum of the Laplacian cannot be bounded from above by a function of the metric entropy. We also provide examples showing that our conditions are essential for the established bounds.

math.DS↗

arXiv2017

Flexibility of exponents for expanding maps on a circle

We consider a smooth expanding map g on the circle of degree 2. It is known that the Lyapunov exponent of g with respect to the unique invariant measure that is absolutely continuous with respect to the Lebesgue measure is positive and less than or equal to log 2 which, in addition, is less than or equal to the Lyapunov exponent of g with respect to the measure of maximal entropy. Moreover, the equalities only occur simultaneously. We show that these are the only restrictions on the Lyapunov exponents considered above for smooth expanding maps of degree 2.

math.DS↗