arXiv subjects

Andrea Ratto

Publications and source records attributed to Andrea Ratto.

17 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Existence and stability of weak critical points of $r$-energy functionals

The main aim of this paper is to prove the existence of certain proper weakly $r$-harmonic ($ES-r$-harmonic) maps. We construct critical points which belong to a family of rotationally symmetric maps $\varphi_a : B^n \to \mathbb{S}^n$, where $B^n$ and $\mathbb{S}^n$ denote the Euclidean $n$-dimensional unit ball and sphere respectively. We find that the existence of solutions within this family is restricted to specific dimensions $n$. Next, we prove that our critical points are \textit{unstable}. In the course of this analysis we point out some specific differences between the $r$-harmonic and the $ES-r$-harmonic cases when $r \geq 4$. Next, we analyse two variants of the problem. First, we replace the target manifold $\mathbb{S}^n$ with a rotationally symmetric ellipsoid $E^n(b)$ and establish the existence of proper weakly biharmonic maps for all $n \geq 5$, as well as proper weakly triharmonic maps for all $n \geq 7$. Finally, we study a similar problem replacing the domain $B^n$ with a suitable warped product manifold.

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arXiv2025

Polyharmonic curves in semi-Riemannian manifolds

Let $(M^m_t,g)$ be a semi-Riemannian manifold of dimension $m$ with a non-degenerate metric of \textit{index} $t$, $m\geq 2$, $1 \leq t \leq m-1$. The main aim of this paper is to investigate the existence of Frenet curves in $(M^m_t,g)$ which are polyharmonic of order $r$, shortly, $r$-harmonic. We shall focus primarily on the cases that the ambient space is a semi-Riemannian space form $N^m_t(c)$ of sectional curvature $c$, a ruled Lorentzian surface or a suitable, possibly warped, product space. We shall obtain existence, non-existence and classification results.

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arXiv2024

Polyharmonic helices

The main aim of this paper is to investigate the existence of Frenet helices which are polyharmonic of order $r$, shortly, $r$-harmonic. We shall obtain existence, non-existence and classification results. More specifically, we obtain a complete classification of proper $r$-harmonic helices into the $3$-dimensional solvable Lie group Sol$_3$. Next, we investigate the existence of proper $r$-harmonic helices into Bianchi-Cartan-Vranceanu spaces and, in this context, we find new examples. Finally, we shall establish some non-existence results both for Frenet curves and Frenet helices of order $n \geq 4$ when the ambient space is the Euclidean sphere $\s^m$.

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arXiv2024

Triharmonic curves in the 3-dimensional Sol space

The main aim of this paper is to study triharmonic curves in the 3-dimensional homogeneous space Sol. In the first part of the paper we shall obtain a complete classification of proper triharmonic curves with constant geodesic curvature and torsion. In the final section we shall show that these triharmonic curves form a constant angle with a suitable Killing field of constant length along the curve.

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arXiv2023

Polyharmonic surfaces in $3$-dimensional homogeneous spaces

In the first part of this paper we shall classify proper triharmonic isoparametric surfaces in 3-dimensional homogeneous spaces (Bianchi-Cartan-Vranceanu spaces, shortly BCV-spaces). We shall also prove that triharmonic Hopf cylinders are necessarily CMC. In the last section we shall determine a complete classification of CMC r-harmonic Hopf cylinders in BCV-spaces, r>=3. This result ensures the existence, for suitable values of r, of an ample family of new examples of r-harmonic surfaces in BCV-spaces.

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arXiv2022

On the second variation of the biharmonic Clifford torus in S^4

The flat torus ${\mathbb T}={\mathbb S}^1\left (\frac{1}{2} \right ) \times {\mathbb S}^1\left (\frac{1}{2} \right )$ admits a proper biharmonic isometric immersion into the unit $4$-dimensional sphere ${\mathbb S}^4$ given by $\Phi=i \circ \varphi$, where $\varphi:{\mathbb T} \to {\mathbb S}^3(\frac{1}{\sqrt 2})$ is the minimal Clifford torus and $i:{\mathbb S}^3(\frac{1}{\sqrt 2}) \to {\mathbb S}^4$ is the biharmonic small hypersphere. The first goal of this paper is to compute the biharmonic index and nullity of the proper biharmonic immersion $\Phi$. After, we shall study in the detail the kernel of the generalised Jacobi operator $I_2^\Phi$. We shall prove that it contains a direction which admits a natural variation with vanishing first, second and third derivatives, and such that the fourth derivative is negative. In the second part of the paper we shall analyse the specific contribution of $\varphi$ to the biharmonic index and nullity of $\Phi$. In this context, we shall study a more general composition $\tilde{\Phi}=\tilde{\varphi} \circ i$, where $\tilde{\varphi}: M^m \to {\mathbb S}^{n-1}(\frac{1}{\sqrt 2})$, $ m \geq 1$, $n \geq {3}$, is a minimal immersion and $i:{\mathbb S}^{n-1}(\frac{1}{\sqrt 2}) \to {\mathbb S}^n$ is the biharmonic small hypersphere. First, we shall determine a general sufficient condition which ensures that the second variation of $\tilde{\Phi}$ is nonnegatively defined on $\mathcal{C}\big (\tilde{\varphi}^{-1}T{\mathbb S}^{n-1}\big )$. Then we complete this type of analysis on our Clifford torus and, as a complementary result, we obtain the $p$-harmonic index and nullity of $\varphi$. In the final section we compare our general results with those which can be deduced from the study of the equivariant second variation.

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arXiv2021

Unique continuation properties for polyharmonic maps between Riemannian manifolds

Polyharmonic maps of order k (briefly, k-harmonic maps) are a natural generalization of harmonic and biharmonic maps. These maps are defined as the critical points of suitable higher order functionals which extend the classical energy functional for maps between Riemannian manifolds. The main aim of this paper is to investigate the so-called unique continuation principle. More precisely, assuming that the domain is connected, we shall prove the following extensions of results known in the harmonic and biharmonic case: (i) if a k-harmonic map is harmonic on an open subset, then it is harmonic everywhere; (ii) if two k-harmonic maps agree on a open subset, then they agree everywhere; (iii) if, for a k-harmonic map to the n-dimensional sphere, an open subset of the domain is mapped into the equator, then all the domain is mapped into the equator.

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arXiv2020

On the stability of the equator map for higher order energy functionals

Let $B^n\subset {\mathbb R}^{n}$ and ${\mathbb S}^n\subset {\mathbb R}^{n+1}$ denote the Euclidean $n$-dimensional unit ball and sphere respectively. The \textit{extrinsic $k$-energy functional} is defined on the Sobolev space $W^{k,2}\left (B^n,{\mathbb S}^n \right )$ as follows: $E_{k}^{{\rm ext}}(u)=\int_{B^n}|\Delta^s u|^2\,dx$ when $k=2s$, and $E_{k}^{{\rm ext}}(u)=\int_{B^n}|\nabla \Delta^s u|^2\,dx$ when $k=2s+1$. These energy functionals are a natural higher order version of the classical extrinsic bienergy, also called Hessian energy. The equator map $u^*: B^n \to {\mathbb S}^n$, defined by $u^*(x)=(x/|x|,0)$, is a critical point of $E_{k}^{{\rm ext}}(u)$ provided that $n \geq 2k+1$. The main aim of this paper is to establish necessary and sufficient conditions on $k$ and $n$ under which $u^*: B^n \to {\mathbb S}^n$ is minimizing or unstable for the extrinsic $k$-energy.

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arXiv2019

Higher order energy functionals

The study of higher order energy functionals was first proposed by Eells and Sampson in 1965 and, later, by Eells and Lemaire in 1983. These functionals provide a natural generalization of the classical energy functional. More precisely, Eells and Sampson suggested the investigation of the so-called $ES-r$-energy functionals $ E_r^{ES}(\varphi)=(1/2)\int_{M}\,|(d^*+d)^r (\varphi)|^2\,dV$, where $ \varphi:M \to N$ is a map between two Riemannian manifolds. In the initial part of this paper we shall clarify some relevant issues about the definition of an $ES-r$-harmonic map, i.e, a critical point of $ E_r^{ES}(\varphi)$. That seems important to us because in the literature other higher order energy functionals have been studied by several authors and consequently some recent examples need to be discussed and extended: this shall be done in the first two sections of this work, where we obtain the first examples of proper critical points of $E_r^{ES}(\varphi)$ when $N={\mathbb S}^m$ $(r \geq4,\, m\geq3)$, and we also prove some general facts which should be useful for future developments of this subject. Next, we shall compute the Euler-Lagrange system of equations for $E_r^{ES}(\varphi)$ for $r=4$. We shall apply this result to the study of maps into space forms and to rotationally symmetric maps: in particular, we shall focus on the study of various family of conformal maps. In Section 4, we shall also show that, even if $2 r > \dim M$, the functionals $ E_r^{ES}(\varphi)$ may not satisfy the classical Palais-Smale Condition (C). In the final part of the paper we shall study the second variation and compute index and nullity of some significant examples.

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arXiv2017

A note on the Almansi property

The first goal of this note is to study the Almansi property on an m-dimensional model in the sense of Greene and Wu and, more generally, in a Riemannian geometric setting. In particular, we shall prove that the only model on which the Almansi property is verified is the Euclidean space R^m. In the second part of the paper we shall study Almansi's property and biharmonicity for functions which depend on the distance from a given submanifold. Finally, in the last section we provide an extension to the semi-Euclidean case R^{p,q} which includes the proof of the classical Almansi property in R^m as a special instance.

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arXiv2016

New examples of r-harmonic immersions into the sphere

Polyharmonic, or $r$-harmonic, maps are a natural generalization of harmonic maps whose study was proposed by Eells-Lemaire in 1983. The main aim of this paper is to construct new examples of proper $r$-harmonic immersions into spheres. In particular, we shall prove that the canonical inclusion $i: S^{n-1}(R)\to S^n$ is a proper $r$-harmonic submanifold of $S^n$ if and only if the radius $R$ is equal to $1/ \sqrt{r}$. We shall also prove the existence of proper $r$-harmonic generalized Clifford's tori into the sphere.

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arXiv2016

Biharmonic functions on the classical compact simple Lie groups

The main aim of this work is to construct several new families of proper biharmonic functions defined on open subsets of the classical compact simple Lie groups $\SU n$, $\SO n$ and $\Sp n$. We work in a geometric setting which connects our study with the theory of submersive harmonic morphisms. We develop a general duality principle and use this to interpret our new examples on the Euclidean sphere $\s ^3$ and on the hyperbolic space $\H^3$.

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arXiv2016

Reduction methods for the bienergy

This paper, in which we develop ideas introduced in \cite{MR}, focuses on \emph{reduction methods} (basically, group actions or, more generally, simmetries) for the bienergy. This type of techniques enable us to produce examples of critical points of the bienergy by reducing the study of the relevant fourth order PDE's system to ODE's. In particular, we shall study rotationally symmetric biharmonic conformal diffeomorphisms between \emph{models}. Next, we will adapt the reduction method to study an ample class of $G-$invariant immersions into the Euclidean space. At present, the known instances in these contexts are far from reaching the depth and variety of their companions which have provided fundamental solutions to classical problems in the theories of harmonic maps and minimal immersions. However, we think that these examples represent an important starting point which can inspire further research on biharmonicity. In this order of ideas, we end this paper with a discussion of some open problems and possible directions for further developments.

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arXiv2015

On cohomogeneity one biharmonic hypersurfaces into the Euclidean space

The aim of this paper is to prove that there exists no cohomogeneity one $G-$invariant proper biharmonic hypersurface into the Euclidean space ${\mathbb R}^n$, where $G$ denotes a tranformation group which acts on ${\mathbb R}^n$ by isometries, with codimension two principal orbits. This result may be considered in the context of the Chen conjecture, since this family of hypersurfaces includes examples with up to seven distinct principal curvatures. The paper uses the methods of equivariant differential geometry. In particular, the technique of proof provides a unified treatment for all these $G-$actions.

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arXiv2015

Rotationally symmetric biharmonic maps between models

The main aim of this paper is to study existence and stability properties of rotationally symmetric proper biharmonic maps between two $m$-dimensional models (in the sense of Greene and Wu). We obtain a complete classification of rotationally symmetric, proper biharmonic conformal diffeomorphisms in the special case that $m=4$ and the models have constant sectional curvature. Then, by introducing the Hamiltonian associated to this problem, we also obtain a complete description of conformal proper biharmonic solutions in the case that the domain model is ${\mathbb R}^4$. In the second part of the paper we carry out a stability study with respect to equivariant variations (equivariant stability). In particular, we prove that: (i) the inverse of the stereographic projection from the open $4$-dimensional Euclidean ball to the hyperbolic space is equivariant stable; (ii) the inverse of the stereographic projection from the closed $4$-dimensional Euclidean ball to the sphere is equivariant stable with respect to variations which preserve the boundary data.

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arXiv2013

Proper Biconservative immersions into the Euclidean space

In this paper, using the framework of equivariant differential geometry, we study proper $SO(p+1) \times SO(q+1)$-invariant biconservative hypersurfaces into the Euclidean space ${\mathbb R}^n$ ($n=p+q+2$) and proper $SO(p+1)$-invariant biconservative hypersurfaces into the Euclidean space ${\mathbb R}^n$ ($n=p+2$). Moreover, we show that, in these two classes of invariant families, there exists no proper biharmonic immersion.

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arXiv2012

A general approach to equivariant biharmonic maps

In this paper we describe a 1-dimensional variational approach to the analytical construction of equivariant biharmonic maps. Our goal is to provide a direct method which enables analysts to compute directly the analytical conditions which guarantee biharmonicity in the presence of suitable symmetries. In the second part of our work, we illustrate and discuss some examples. In particular, we obtain a 1-dimensional stability result, and also show that biharmonic maps do not satisfy the classical maximum principle proved by Sampson for harmonic maps.

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