Affine geometries defined by fiber preserving diffeomorphisms (Q1175632): Difference between revisions

It is remarked in the introduction that a given manifold \(M\) may support more than one metric, and that the selection of a particular metric is often based on the use of a variational principle. Since the class of all metrics on \(M\) is a subset of the set of all sections of the vector bundle \(T^ 0_ 2M\), one has a rigorous framework for any theory that seeks to select a metric in this sense. (In particular, general relativity is a theory of this kind.) It is the purpose of the present paper to develop a corresponding framework for affine geometry, possibly with a view to applications to affine theories of gravitation. The theory is based on the following definition. An ordered triple (\(A,V,d\)) is called an affine space, if \(d\) is a function from \(A\times A\) to \(V\) such that (1) for \(y,x,z\in A\), \(d(y,z)=d(y,x)+d(x,z)\), (2) for \(x\in A\), the function \(d_ x: A\to V\) defined by \(d_ x(y)=d(x,y)\) is a bijection. The theory of such affine geometry requires the use of certain function spaces, whose properties are analyzed in detail. This gives rise to a rigorous definition of an affine bundle together with the concomitant infinite dimensional vector bundles. Symmetry-breaking properties associated with special classes of affine structures are obtained and parallels are drawn with the metric case. The concluding section is devoted to a comparison of the author's formalism with the application of affine geometry to the dynamics of charged particles as developed by \textit{K. Norris} [Phys. Rev. D 31, 3090-3098 (1985)].