arXiv subjects

Argam Ohanyan

Publications and source records attributed to Argam Ohanyan.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Ideal points, directed completion and the case of the maximally extended Schwarzschild spacetime

We study the directed completion of Lorentzian pre-length spaces, and we show that, under some natural assumptions which cover the case of smooth globally hyperbolic spacetimes, it coincides with the future causal completion of Geroch--Kronheimer--Penrose. Moreover, we provide applications of our findings by characterizing the directed completion of the Kruskal--Szekeres spacetime in terms of its radial null geodesics.

math.DG↗

arXiv2026

Failure of local equi-Lipschitzness for families of Lorentz distances to Cauchy surface foliations

The families of Lorentzian distance functions to and from points along a complete timelike line in a spacetime are known to be locally equi-Lipschitz continuous in a neighborhood of the line. This is an essential component in the proof of the classical Lorentzian splitting theorems. We show that this property fails in general for families of Lorentzian distances to and from the level sets of a given Cauchy temporal function. Moreover, we formulate conjectures based on the existence of Cauchy temporal functions in cosmological and timelike geodesically complete spacetimes such that the Lorentz distances to its level sets are equi-Lipschitz, which are equivalent to Bartnik's splitting conjecture.

math.DG↗

arXiv2026

Positive resolution of Bartnik's cosmological splitting conjecture

We give a proof of the cosmological splitting conjecture of Robert Bartnik from 1988, which expresses the rigidity of the cosmological Hawking--Penrose singularity theorem. It states that a timelike geodesically complete, globally hyperbolic spacetime which has compact Cauchy surfaces and satisfies the strong energy condition must split isometrically as a Lorentzian product. Our methods combine the construction of global viscosity solutions to the Lorentzian eikonal equation by Zhu--Wu--Cui with our recently developed elliptic approach to the proof of Lorentzian splitting theorems in joint work with Braun, Gigli and S\"amann, where we make use of the $p$-d'Alembertian operator for $p < 1$.

math.DG↗

arXiv2026

Timelike Ricci curvature lower bounds via optimal transport for Orlicz-type Lorentzian costs

We study the optimal transport problem on globally hyperbolic spacetimes associated with Orlicz-type Lorentzian cost functions of the form $u \circ \ell$, where $u$ is a suitable monotonically increasing and concave function, and $\ell$ is the time separation. Our work encompasses and generalises the case $u(x) = u_p(x) = p^{-1}x^p$ for $p \in (0,1)$, as well as the more recent $p < 0$, which have been the only examples considered so far in the literature. A fundamental notion for our purposes is the property of $u$-separation for a pair of measures, which generalises McCann's $p$-separation and for which we are able to obtain strong duality to the full Orlicz-type optimization problem. In our main results, we characterise timelike Ricci curvature lower bounds via the convexity of the relative entropy along geodesics arising from the Orlicz-type optimal transport with cost $u \circ \ell$, which is a far-reaching generalisation of McCann's seminal work in the case $u = u_p$, $p \in (0,1)$.

math.DG↗

arXiv2025

The Penrose singularity theorem, MOTS stability, and horizon topology in weighted spacetimes

We consider versions of the Penrose singularity theorem and the Hawking horizon topology theorem in weighted spacetimes that contain weighted versions of trapped surfaces, for arbitrary spacetime dimension and synthetic dimension. We find that suitable generalizations of the unweighted theorems hold under a weighted null energy condition. Our results also provide further evidence in favour of a weighted scalar curvature that differs from the trace of the weighted Ricci curvature. When the synthetic dimension is a positive integer, these weighted curvatures have a natural interpretation in terms of warped product metrics.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2025

Timelike conjugate points in Lorentzian length spaces

We study notions of conjugate points along timelike geodesics in the synthetic setting of Lorentzian (pre-)length spaces, inspired by earlier work for metric spaces by Shankar--Sormani. After preliminary considerations on convergence of timelike and causal geodesics, we introduce and compare one-sided, symmetric, unreachable and ultimate conjugate points along timelike geodesics. We show that all such notions are compatible with the usual one in the smooth (strongly causal) spacetime setting. As applications, we prove a timelike Rauch comparison theorem, as well as a result closely related to the recently established Lorentzian Cartan--Hadamard theorem by Er\"{o}s--Gieger. In the appendix, we give a detailed treatment of the Fr\'{e}chet distance on the space of non-stopping curves up to reparametrization, a technical tool used throughout the paper.

math.DG↗

arXiv2025

Topological cones and positively polarizable hyperbolic norms

In the first part of this article, we study linear cones over totally ordered fields. We show that for each such cone there uniquely exists a universal vector space (called its spanned vector space) into which it embeds as a generating convex cone. Moreover, we investigate topologies on cones for which the natural cone operations are continuous, and study how these topologies carry over to the spanned vector space. In the second part, we deal with hyperbolic norms which satisfy a polarization identity and are defined on cones over the real numbers. We show that, under reasonable assumptions, such hyperbolic norms induce a Lorentzian inner product on the spanned vector space. Finally, we establish a link between completeness under the Wick rotation of a Lorentzian inner product and order-theoretic completeness.

math.MG↗

arXiv2025

Generalizing the Penrose cut-and-paste method: Null shells with pressure and energy flux

The cut-and-paste method is a procedure for constructing null thin shells by matching two regions of the same spacetime across a null hypersurface. Originally proposed by Penrose, it has so far allowed to describe purely gravitational and null-dust shells in constant-curvature backgrounds. In this paper, we extend the cut-and-paste method to null shells with arbitrary gravitational/matter content. To that aim, we first derive a locally Lipschitz continuous form of the metric of the spacetime resulting from the most general matching of two constant-curvature spacetimes with totally geodesic null boundaries, and then obtain the coordinate transformation that turns this metric into the cut-and-paste form with a Dirac-delta term. The paper includes an example of a null shell with non-trivial energy density, energy flux and pressure in Minkowski space.

math.DG↗

arXiv2025

A Lorentzian splitting theorem for continuously differentiable metrics and weights

We prove a splitting theorem for globally hyperbolic, weighted spacetimes with metrics and weights of regularity $C^1$ by combining elliptic techniques for the negative homogeneity $p$-d'Alembert operator from our recent work in the smooth setting with the concept of line-adapted curves introduced here. Our results extend the Lorentzian splitting theorem proved for smooth globally hyperbolic spacetimes by Galloway -- and variants of its weighted counterparts by Case and Woolgar--Wylie -- to this low regularity setting.

math.DG↗

arXiv2025

Distributional sectional curvature bounds for Riemannian metrics of low regularity

Sectional curvature bounds are of central importance in the study of Riemannian manifolds, both in smooth differential geometry and in the generalized synthetic setting of Alexandrov spaces. Riemannian metrics along with metric spaces of bounded sectional curvature enjoy a variety of, oftentimes rigid, geometric properties. The purpose of this article is to introduce and discuss a new notion of sectional curvature bounds for manifolds equipped with continuous Riemannian metrics of Geroch--Traschen regularity, i.e., $H^1_{\mathrm{loc}} \cap C^0$, based on a distributional version of the classical formula. Our main result states that for $g \in C^1$, this new notion recovers the corresponding bound based on triangle comparison in the sense of Alexandrov. A weaker version of this statement is also proven for locally Lipschitz continuous metrics.

math.DG↗

arXiv2024

Splitting theorems for weighted Finsler spacetimes via the $p$-d'Alembertian: beyond the Berwald case

A timelike splitting theorem for Finsler spacetimes was previously established by the third author, in collaboration with Lu and Minguzzi, under relatively strong hypotheses, including the Berwald condition. This contrasts with the more general results known for positive definite Finsler manifolds. In this article, we employ a recently developed strategy for proving timelike splitting theorems using the elliptic $p$-d'Alembertian. This approach, pioneered by Braun, Gigli, McCann, S\"amann, and the second author, allows us to remove the restrictive assumptions of the earlier splitting theorem. For timelike geodesically complete Finsler spacetimes, we establish a diffeomorphic splitting. In the specific case of Berwald spacetimes, we show that the Busemann function generates a group of isometries via translations. Furthermore, for Berwald spacetimes, we extend these splitting theorems by replacing the assumption of timelike geodesic completeness with global hyperbolicity. Our results encompass and generalize the timelike splitting theorems for weighted Lorentzian manifolds previously obtained by Case and Woolgar-Wylie.

math.DG↗

arXiv2024

An elliptic proof of the splitting theorems from Lorentzian geometry

We provide a new proof of the splitting theorems from Lorentzian geometry, in which simplicity is gained by sacrificing linearity of the d'Alembertian to recover ellipticity. We exploit a negative homogeneity (non-uniformly) elliptic $p$-d'Alembert operator for this purpose. This allows us to bring the Eschenburg, Galloway, and Newman Lorentzian splitting theorems into a framework closer to the Cheeger-Gromoll splitting theorem from Riemannian geometry.

math.DG↗

arXiv2024

A nonlinear d'Alembert comparison theorem and causal differential calculus on metric measure spacetimes

We introduce a variational first-order Sobolev calculus on metric measure spacetimes. The key object is the maximal weak subslope of an arbitrary causal function, which plays the role of the (Lorentzian) modulus of its differential. It is shown to satisfy certain chain and Leibniz rules, certify a locality property, and be compatible with its smooth analog. In this setup, we propose a quadraticity condition termed infinitesimal Minkowskianity, which singles out genuinely Lorentzian structures among Lorentz-Finsler spacetimes. Moreover, we establish a comparison theorem for a nonlinear yet elliptic $p$-d'Alembertian in a weak form under the timelike measure contraction property. As a particular case, this extends Eschenburg's classical estimate past the timelike cut locus.

math.DG↗

arXiv2024

Vacuum cosmological spacetimes without CMC Cauchy surfaces

In this article, we extend a construction of [6] to obtain a large class of vacuum cosmological spacetimes that do not contain any CMC Cauchy surfaces. The allowed spatial topologies for these examples are of the form $M \# M$, where $M$ is any closed, oriented, irreducible $3$-manifold which is not spherical. This complements the recent results of [19], where, instead of initial data methods, global spacetime gluing arguments were used. The study of such examples is sure to yield insight into Bartnik's cosmological splitting conjecture [1].

gr-qc↗

arXiv2024

Ricci curvature bounds and rigidity for non-smooth Riemannian and semi-Riemannian metrics

We study rigidity problems for Riemannian and semi-Riemannian manifolds with metrics of low regularity. Specifically, we prove a version of the Cheeger-Gromoll splitting theorem \cite{CheegerGromoll72splitting} for Riemannian metrics and the flatness criterion for semi-Riemannian metrics of regularity $C^1$. With our proof of the splitting theorem, we are able to obtain an isometry of higher regularity than the Lipschitz regularity guaranteed by the $\mathsf{RCD}$-splitting theorem \cite{gigli2013splitting, gigli2014splitoverview}. Along the way, we establish a Bochner-Weitzenb\"ock identity which permits both the non-smoothness of the metric and of the vector fields, complementing a recent similar result in \cite{mondino2024equivalence}. The last section of the article is dedicated to the discussion of various notions of Sobolev spaces in low regularity, as well as an alternative proof of the equivalence (see \cite{mondino2024equivalence}) between distributional Ricci curvature bounds and $\mathsf{RCD}$-type bounds, using in part the stability of the variable $\mathsf{CD}$-condition under suitable limits \cite{ketterer2017variableCD}.

math.DG↗

arXiv2024

The equivalence of smooth and synthetic notions of timelike sectional curvature bounds

Timelike sectional curvature bounds play an important role in spacetime geometry, both for the understanding of classical smooth spacetimes and for the study of Lorentzian (pre-)length spaces introduced in \cite{kunzinger2018lorentzian}. In the smooth setting, a bound on the sectional curvature of timelike planes can be formulated via the Riemann curvature tensor. In the synthetic setting, bounds are formulated by comparing various geometric configurations to the corresponding ones in constant curvature spaces. The first link between these notions in the Lorentzian context was established in \cite{harris1982triangle}, which was instrumental in the proof of powerful results in spacetime geometry \cite{beem1985toponogov, beem1985decomposition, galloway2018existence}. For general semi-Riemannian manifolds, the equivalence between sectional curvature bounds and synthetic bounds was established in \cite{alexander2008triangle}, however in this approach the sectional curvatures of both timelike and spacelike planes have to be considered. In this article, we fill a gap in the literature by proving the full equivalence between sectional curvature bounds on timelike planes and synthetic timelike bounds on strongly causal spacetimes. As an essential tool, we establish Hessian comparison for the time separation and signed distance functions.

math.DG↗

arXiv2023

Examples of cosmological spacetimes without CMC Cauchy surfaces

CMC (constant mean curvature) Cauchy surfaces play an important role in mathematical relativity as finding solutions to the vacuum Einstein constraint equations is made much simpler by assuming CMC initial data. However, in [2] Bartnik constructed a cosmological spacetime without a CMC Cauchy surface whose spatial topology is the connected sum of two three-dimensional tori. Similarly, in [9], Chru\'sciel, Isenberg, and Pollack constructed a vacuum cosmological spacetime without CMC Cauchy surfaces whose spatial topology was also the connected sum of two tori. In this article, we enlarge the known number of spatial topologies for cosmological spacetimes without CMC Cauchy surfaces by generalizing Bartnik's construction. Specifically, we show that there are cosmological spacetimes without CMC Cauchy surfaces whose spatial topologies are the connected sum of any compact oriented Euclidean or hyperbolic three-manifold with any another compact oriented Euclidean or hyperbolic three-manifold. We work with the Tolman-Bondi class of metrics and prove gluing results for variable marginal conditions, which allows for smooth gluing of Schwarzschild to FLRW models.

gr-qc↗

arXiv2022

The splitting theorem for globally hyperbolic Lorentzian length spaces with non-negative timelike curvature

In this work, we prove a synthetic splitting theorem for globally hyperbolic Lorentzian length spaces with global non-negative timelike curvature containing a complete timelike line. Just like in the case of smooth spacetimes, we construct complete, timelike asymptotes which, via triangle comparison, can be shown to fit together to give timelike lines. To get a control on their behaviour, we introduce the notion of parallelity of timelike lines in the spirit of the splitting theorem for Alexandrov spaces and show that asymptotic lines are all parallel. This helps to establish a splitting of a neighbourhood of the given line. We then show that this neighbourhood has the timelike completeness property and is hence inextendible, which globalises the local result.

math.DG↗