arXiv research

Paradan and Vergne generalised the quantisation commutes with reduction principle of Guillemin and Sternberg from symplectic to Spin$^c$-manifolds. We extend their result to noncompact groups and manifolds. This leads to a result for cocompact actions, and a result for non-cocompact actions for reduction at zero. The r…

We establish a Lichnerowicz type vanishing theorem for non-compact spin manifolds admiting proper cocompact actions, when the action group is unimodular.

Characterizes convex cocompact actions in projective space with dynamical properties.

New criteria for non-isometric group actions in metric spaces.

New spaces found without certain actions, using special subgroups.

We first introduce an invariant index for G-equivariant elliptic differential operators on a locally compact manifold M admitting a proper cocompact action of a locally compact group G. It generalizes the Kawasaki index for orbifolds to the case of proper cocompact actions. Our invariant index is used to show that an a…

Given a group action on a simplicial complex such that each simplex stabiliser admits a cocompact model of classifying space for proper actions, we give conditions implying the existence of a cocompact model of classifying space for proper actions for the whole group. This is used to generalise previous combination res…

Sharp growth tightness proven for group quotients.

Given a proper, cocompact action of a Lie groupoid, we define a higher index pairing between invariant elliptic differential operators and smooth groupoid cohomology classes. We prove a cohomological index formula for this pairing by applying the van Est map and algebraic index theory. Finally we discuss in examples th…

For finitely generated groups $G$ and $H$ equipped with word metrics, a translation-like action of $H$ on $G$ is a free action where each element of $H$ moves elements of $G$ a bounded distance. Translation-like actions provide a geometric generalization of subgroup containment. Extending work of Cohen, we show that co…

Survey recent constructions of cyclic cocycles for Lie groups.

We study a notion of convex cocompactness for discrete subgroups of the projective general linear group acting (not necessarily irreducibly) on real projective space, and give various characterizations. A convex cocompact group in this sense need not be word hyperbolic, but we show that it still has some of the good pr…

This paper presents a study of the asymptotic geometry of groups with contracting elements, with emphasis on a subclass of statistically convex-cocompact (SCC) actions. The class of SCC actions includes relatively hyperbolic groups, CAT(0) groups with rank-1 elements and mapping class groups, among others. We exploit a…

We characterize convex cocompact subgroups of the mapping class group of a surface in terms of uniform convergence actions on the zero locus of the limit set. We also construct subgroups that act as uniform convergence groups on their limit sets, but are not convex cocompact.

We introduce and systematically study the concept of a growth tight action. This generalizes growth tightness for word metrics as initiated by Grigorchuk and de la Harpe. Given a finitely generated, non-elementary group $G$ acting on a $G$--space $\mathcal{X}$, we prove that if $G$ contains a strongly contracting eleme…

We introduce a Hopf algebroid associated to a proper Lie group action on a smooth manifold. We prove that the cyclic cohomology of this Hopf algebroid is equal to the de Rham cohomology of invariant differential forms. When the action is cocompact, we develop a generalized Hodge theory for the de Rham cohomology of inv…

Sharpness of actions on reductive homogeneous spaces proven for various groups.

We investigate conformal actions of cocompact lattices in higher-rank simple Lie groups on compact pseudo-Riemannian manifolds. Our main result gives a general bound on the real-rank of the lattice, which was already known for the action of the full Lie group by a result of Zimmer. When the real-rank is maximal, we pro…

Let $G$ be a group that admits a cocompact classifying space for proper actions $X$. We derive a formula for the Bredon cohomological dimension for proper actions of $G$ in terms of the relative cohomology with compact support of certain pairs of subcomplexes of $X$. We use this formula to compute the Bredon cohomologi…

The problem of equivariant rigidity is the $Γ$-homeomorphism classification of $Γ$-actions on manifolds with compact quotient and with contractible fixed sets for all finite subgroups of $Γ$. In other words, this is the classification of cocompact $E_{fin}Γ$-manifolds. We use surgery theory, algebraic $K$-theory, and t…

This paper studies the generic behavior of $k$-tuple elements for $k\ge 2$ in a proper group action with contracting elements, with applications towards relatively hyperbolic groups, CAT(0) groups and mapping class groups. For a class of statistically convex-cocompact action, we show that an exponential generic set of …

New statistical convex-cocompactness found for non-orientable surfaces.

Study of groups acting on complex projective varieties.

The paper classifies fiber structures of discontinuity domains for Anosov representations.

We prove a Lichnerowicz type vanishing theorem for non-compact spin manifolds admiting proper cocompact actions. This extends a previous result of Ziran Liu who proves it for the case where the acting group is unimodular.

For a convex cocompact subgroup $G<Mod(S)$, and points $x,y \in Teich(S)$ we obtain asymptotic formulas as $R\to \infty$ of $|B_{R}(x)\cap Gy|$ as well as the number of conjugacy classes of pseudo-Anosov elements in $G$ of dilatation at most $R$. We do this by developing an analogue of Patterson-Sullivan theory for the…

Let G be a group and let M be a CAT(0) proper metric space (e.g. a simply connected complete Riemannian manifold of non-positive sectional curvature or a locally finite tree). Isometric actions of G on M are (by definition) points in the space R := Hom(G, Isom(M)) with the compact open topology. Sample theorems: 1. The…

We consider the action of Anosov subgroups of a semi-simple Lie group on the associated flag manifolds. A systematic approach to construct cocompact domains of discontinuity for this action was given by Kapovich, Leeb and Porti in arXiv:1306.3837. For $Δ$-Anosov representations, we prove that every cocompact domain of …

We characterize strongly Morse quasi-geodesics in Outer space as quasi-geodesics which project to quasi-geodesics in the free factor graph. We define convex cocompact subgroups of $Out(F_n)$ as subgroups such that an orbit map in the free factor graph is a quasi-isometric embedding, and we characterize such groups via …

Frame flows on certain symmetric spaces mix exponentially.

Defines an equivariant index for proper actions by $H imes G$.

There is a forgetful map from the mapping class group of a punctured surface to that of the surface with one fewer puncture. We prove that finitely generated purely pseudo-Anosov subgroups of the kernel of this map are convex cocompact in the sense of B. Farb and L. Mosher. In particular, we obtain an affirmative answe…

We give a superconnection proof of Connes' index theorem for proper cocompact actions of etale groupoids. This includes Connes' general foliation index theorem for foliations with Hausdorff holonomy groupoid.

Study index theory on Lie group homogeneous spaces using topological and analytic methods.

We study discrete, cocompact, isometric actions of groups on Hadamard spaces, and the induced actions on ideal boundaries. For a class of groups generalizing fundamental groups of three-dimensional graph manifolds, we find a set of invariants for the action which determine the boundary action up to equivariant homeomor…

We develop a theory of convex cocompact subgroups of the mapping class group MCG of a closed, oriented surface S of genus at least 2, in terms of the action on Teichmuller space. Given a subgroup G of MCG defining an extension L_G: 1--> pi_1(S) --> L_G --> G -->1 we prove that if L_G is a word hyperbolic group then G i…

We show that the mapping class group of a closed surface admits a cocompact classifying space for proper actions of dimension equal to its virtual cohomological dimension.

Anosov representations of word hyperbolic groups into higher-rank semisimple Lie groups are representations with finite kernel and discrete image that have strong analogies with convex cocompact representations into rank-one Lie groups. However, the most naive analogy fails: generically, Anosov representations do not a…

We study the existence of closed geodesics on compact Riemannian orbifolds, and on noncompact Riemannian manifolds in the presence of a cocompact, isometric group action. We show that every noncontractible Riemannian manifold which admits such an action, and every odd-dimensional, compact Riemannian orbifold has a nont…

We prove geometric superrigidity for actions of cocompact lattices in semisimple Lie groups of higher rank on infinite dimensional Riemannian manifolds of nonpositive curvature and finite telescopic dimension.

In this paper, we construct for the first time, the Witten genus and elliptic genera on noncompact manifolds with a proper cocompact action by an almost connected Lie group and prove vanishing and rigidity results that generalise known results for compact group actions on compact manifolds. We also compute our genera f…

Morse inequalities for noncompact manifolds with group action.

We show that tree almost automorphism groups, including Neretin groups, satisfy the analogue of the $F_\infty$-finiteness condition in the world of totally disconnected groups: They possess a cellular action on a contractible cellular complex such that the stabilizers are open and compact and the restriction of the act…

Analyzes semi-characteristics on specific manifolds, proving a vanishing theorem.

Let $X, Y$ be complete, simply connected Riemannian surfaces with pinched negative curvature $-b^2 \leq K \leq -1$. We show that if $f : \partial X \to \partial Y$ is a Moebius homeomorphism between the boundaries at infinity of $X, Y$, then $f$ extends to an isometry $F : X \to Y$. This can be viewed as a generalizati…

This paper proves the existence of a smooth embedding for symmetrical manifolds.

Holomorphic actions on complex spaces for nilpotent groups.

Study shows mapping class group dimension for surfaces with punctures.