arXiv subjects

Bernhard Hanke

Publications and source records attributed to Bernhard Hanke.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Spaces of metrics with positive spectral scalar curvature

Let $n\geq2$ and let $M^n$ be a closed connected smooth manifold. Let $R^\gamma(M)$ be the space of smooth Riemannian metrics $g$ on $M$ for which the generalized conformal Laplace operator $-\gamma\Delta_g+\mathrm{R}_g$ is strictly positive. We prove that if $n=2$ and $\gamma>0$, or if $n\ge3$ and $0< \gamma \leq 4(n-1)/(n-2)$, the inclusion $R^0(M)\hookrightarrow R^\gamma(M)$ is a homotopy equivalence, thus generalizing, to all dimensions and in the maximal range, the results of Botvinnik--Rosenberg and Li--Mantoulidis. Then, we prove that if $n\ge3$ and $\gamma>4(n-1)/(n-2)$, the space $R^\gamma(M)$ is contractible, and hence nonempty. This solves a homotopy-theoretic strengthening of a conjecture of Gromov (Conjecture 3, Section 6.1.2, "Four Lectures on Scalar Curvature") in the maximal possible coefficient range. Concerning Gromov's conjecture we also treat the equivariant case and the case of manifolds with boundary.

math.DG↗

arXiv2026

The lock principle for scalar curvature

We prove a Riemannian positive mass theorem for asymptotically flat spin manifolds with hypersurface singularities. Unlike earlier results, some components of the singular set may be mean-concave, provided that other components of the singular set are sufficiently mean-convex. Our proof uses initial data sets where a suitably chosen second fundamental form transfers convexity defects between different singularity components.

math.DG↗

arXiv2026

Surgery and total mean curvature

We prove Gromov's conjecture on the total mean curvature of fill-ins in various cases. Our methods are based on surgery to reduce the statement to fill-ins of spheres, which can be treated by instances of the positive mass theorem. For spin fill-ins, where we permit the mean curvature to take negative values, we build on a classical surgery result of Lawson-Michelsohn and a recent positive mass theorem with creases by Kazaras-Khuri-Lin. For non-spin fill-ins of spin manifolds, where we assume the mean curvature to be non-negative, we develop a novel quantitative surgery process to reduce the general situation to a result of Shi-Wang-Wei. We also treat the case of fill-ins of non-spin manifolds, provided there is a fixed positive lower bound on the mean curvature.

math.DG↗

arXiv2025

Abstract cone operators and Lipschitz rigidity for scalar curvature on singular manifolds

Using the index theory for twisted Dirac operators acting on sections of Lipschitz bundles over non-compact manifolds, we prove Llarull-type comparison results in scalar curvature geometry. They apply to spin Riemannian manifolds with cone-type singularities and Lipschitz comparison maps to spheres. We use the language of abstract cone operators which are introduced and studied in a general functional analytic setting and which may be of independent interest. Applying our discussion to spherical suspensions of odd-dimensional closed manifolds, we generalize a Lipschitz rigidity result of the first three named authors from even to odd dimensions. Under stronger conditions, this has already been shown by Lee-Tam using geometric flows and by Baer using an upper estimate for the smallest Dirac eigenvalue.

math.DG↗

arXiv2025

Contractibility of spaces of positive scalar curvature metrics with symmetry

We show the contractibility of spaces of invariant Riemannian metrics of positive scalar curvature on compact connected manifolds of dimension at least two, with and without boundary and equipped with compact Lie group actions. On manifolds without boundary, we assume that the Lie group contains a normal $S^1$-subgroup with fixed-point components of codimension two. In this situation, the existence of invariant metrics of positive scalar curvature was known previously. For the proof, we combine equivariant Morse theory with conformal deformations near unstable manifolds. On manifolds without boundary, we also use local flexibility properties of positive scalar curvature metrics and the smoothing of mean-convex singularities.

math.DG↗

arXiv2023

K-cowaist of manifolds with boundary

We extend the K-cowaist inequality to generalized Dirac operators in the sense of Gromov and Lawson and study applications to manifolds with boundary.

math.DG↗

arXiv2023

Scalar curvature rigidity of warped product metrics

We show scalar-mean curvature rigidity of warped products of round spheres of dimension at least 2 over compact intervals equipped with strictly log-concave warping functions. This generalizes earlier results of Cecchini-Zeidler to all dimensions. Moreover, we show scalar curvature rigidity of round spheres of dimension at least 3 with two antipodal points removed. This resolves a problem in Gromov's ''Four Lectures'' in all dimensions. Our arguments are based on spin geometry.

math.DG↗

arXiv2023

Rigidity results for initial data sets satisfying the dominant energy condition

Our work proves rigidity theorems for initial data sets associated with compact smooth spin manifolds with boundary and with compact convex polytopes, subject to the dominant energy condition. For manifolds with smooth boundary, this is based on the solution of a boundary value problem for Dirac operators. For convex polytopes we use approximations by manifolds with smooth boundary.

math.DG↗

arXiv2022

Lipschitz rigidity for scalar curvature

Let $M$ be a closed smooth connected spin manifold of even dimension $n$, let $g$ be a Riemannian metric of regularity $W^{1,p}$, $p > n$, on $M$ whose distributional scalar curvature in the sense of Lee-LeFloch is bounded below by $n(n-1)$, and let $f \colon (M,g) \to \mathbb{S}^n$ be a $1$-Lipschitz continuous (not necessarily smooth) map of non-zero degree to the unit $n$-sphere. Then $f$ is a metric isometry. This generalizes a result of Llarull (1998) and answers in the affirmative a question of Gromov (2019) in his "Four lectures". Our proof is based on spectral properties of Dirac operators for low regularity Riemannian metrics and twisted with Lipschitz bundles. We argue that the existence of a non-zero harmonic spinor field forces $f$ to be quasiregular in the sense of Reshetnyak, and in this way connect the powerful theory for quasiregular maps to the Atiyah-Singer index theorem.

math.DG↗

arXiv2022

Scalar positive immersions

As shown by Gromov-Lawson and Stolz the only obstruction to the existence of positive scalar curvature metrics on closed simply connected manifolds in dimensions at least five appears on spin manifolds and is given by the non-vanishing of the $α$-genus of Hitchin. When unobstructed we shall realize a positive scalar curvature metric by an immersion into Euclidean space whose dimension is uniformly close to the classical Whitney upper bound for smooth immersions. Our main tool is an extrinsic counterpart of the well-known Gromov-Lawson surgery procedure for constructing positive scalar curvature metrics.

math.DG↗

arXiv2022

Remarks on the paper "On Gromov's dihedral extremality and rigidity conjectures" by Jinmin Wang, Zhizhang Xie and Guoliang Yu

Version 2 of the article "On Gromov's dihedral extremality and rigidity conjectures" by Jinmin Wang, Zhizhang Xie and Guoliang Yu makes a number of claims for self-adjoint extensions of Dirac type operators on manifolds with corners under local boundary conditions. We construct a counterexample to an index computation in that paper which affects the proof of its main result stating a generalisation of Gromov's dihedral extremality conjecture.

math.DG↗

arXiv2021

Torsion Obstructions to Positive Scalar Curvature

We study obstructions to the existence of Riemannian metrics of positive scalar curvature on closed smooth manifolds arising from torsion classes in the integral homology of their fundamental groups. As an application, we construct new examples of manifolds which do not admit positive scalar curvature metrics, but whose Cartesian products admit such metrics.

math.DG↗

arXiv2021

Bott-Thom isomorphism, Hopf bundles and Morse theory

Based on Morse theory for the energy functional on path spaces we develop a deformation theory for mapping spaces of spheres into orthogonal groups. This is used to show that these mapping spaces are weakly homotopy equivalent, in a stable range, to mapping spaces associated to orthogonal Clifford representations. Given an oriented Euclidean bundle $V \to X$ of rank divisible by four over a finite complex $X$ we derive a stable decomposition result for vector bundles over the sphere bundle $\mathord{\mathbb S}( \mathbb{R} \oplus V)$ in terms of vector bundles and Clifford module bundles over $X$. After passing to topological K-theory these results imply classical Bott-Thom isomorphism theorems.

math.AT↗

arXiv2021

Positive scalar curvature on manifolds with odd order abelian fundamental groups

We introduce Riemannian metrics of positive scalar curvature on manifolds with Baas-Sullivan singularities, prove a corresponding homology invariance principle and discuss admissible products. Using this theory we construct positive scalar curvature metrics on closed smooth manifolds of dimension at least five which have odd order abelian fundamental groups, are nonspin and atoral. This solves the Gromov-Lawson-Rosenberg conjecture for a new class of manifolds with finite fundamental groups.

math.DG↗

arXiv2020

Boundary conditions for scalar curvature

Based on the Atiyah-Patodi-Singer index formula, we construct an obstruction to positive scalar curvature metrics with mean convex boundaries on spin manifolds of infinite K-area. We also characterize the extremal case. Next we show a general deformation principle for boundary conditions of metrics with lower scalar curvature bounds. This implies that the relaxation of boundary conditions often induces weak homotopy equivalences of spaces of such metrics. This can be used to refine the smoothing of codimension-one singularites a la Miao and the deformation of boundary conditions a la Brendle-Marques-Neves, among others. Finally, we construct compact manifolds for which the spaces of positive scalar curvature metrics with mean convex boundaries have nontrivial higher homotopy groups.

math.DG↗

arXiv2020

Local Flexibility for Open Partial Differential Relations

We show that local deformations, near closed subsets, of solutions to open partial differential relations can be extended to global deformations, provided all but the highest derivatives stay constant along the subset. The applicability of this general result is illustrated by a number of examples, dealing with convex embeddings of hypersurfaces, differential forms, and lapse functions in Lorentzian geometry. The main application is a general approximation result by sections which have very restrictive local properties an open dense subsets. This shows, for instance, that given any $K \in \mathbb{R}$ every manifold of dimension at least two carries a complete $C^{1,1}$-metric which, on a dense open subset, is smooth with constant sectional curvature $K$. Of course this is impossible for $C^2$-metrics in general.

math.DG↗

arXiv2018

An equivariant Quillen theorem

A classical theorem due to Quillen (1969) identifies the unitary bordism ring with the Lazard ring, which classifies the universal one-dimensional commutative formal group law. We prove an equivariant generalization of this result by identifying the homotopy theoretic $\mathbb{Z}/2$-equivariant unitary bordism ring, introduced by tom Dieck (1970), with the $\mathbb{Z}/2$-equivariant Lazard ring, introduced by Cole-Greenlees-Kriz (2000). Our proof combines a computation of the homotopy theoretic $\mathbb{Z}/2$-equivariant unitary bordism ring due to Strickland (2001) with a detailed investigation of the $\mathbb{Z}/2$-equivariant Lazard ring.

math.AT↗

arXiv2017

$Γ$-structures and symmetric spaces

$Γ$-structures are weak forms of multiplications on closed oriented manifolds. As shown by Hopf the rational cohomology algebras of manifolds admitting $Γ$-structures are free over odd degree generators. We prove that this condition is also sufficient for the existence of $Γ$-structures on manifolds which are nilpotent in the sense of homotopy theory. This includes homogeneous spaces with connected isotropy groups. Passing to a more geometric perspective we show that on compact oriented Riemannian symmetric spaces with connected isotropy groups and free rational cohomology algebras the canonical products given by geodesic symmetries define $Γ$-structures. This extends work of Albers, Frauenfelder and Solomon on $Γ$-structures on Lagrangian Grassmannians.

math.DG↗