Isospectral sets of conformally equivalent metrics (Q1117475): Difference between revisions

Let M be a compact manifold of dimension m. Two metrics are isospectral if the associated Laplacians have the same spectrum; one is only interested in the case, of course, where the metrics are not isometries. The first pairs of isospectral metrics which are conformal is given by the first author and \textit{R. Tse} [Nagoya Math. J. 170, 13-24 (1987; Zbl 0605.58041)]. The authors show: Theorem 1: \(\exists\) manifolds M with conformally equivalent isospectral metrics. The importance of this result is that there is a wide degree of freedom in the construction; it is closely related to a construction of \textit{T. Sunada} [Ann. Math., II. Ser. 121, 169-186 (1985; Zbl 0585.58047)]. The authors also show Theorem 2. If \(m=3\) and if \(\exists\) a metric of negative scalar curvature within a conformal class C, then an isospectral set of metrics within this conformal class is compact modulo gauge equivalence. This is a seminal paper that has already spawned later developments. 1) The examples of Theorem 1 all form finite families. A later paper by the first author and \textit{Gordon} [Isospectral families of conformally equivalent Riemannian metrics (preprint)] generalizes the construction of Theorem 1. The first author and Gordon construct an isospectral family of metrics within a conformal class on a 7 dimensional nil manifold. 2) \textit{Chang} and the third author [Isospectral conformal metrics on 3 manifolds (preprint)] remove the hypothesis of negative scalar curvature. Chang and the third author use the solution to the Yamabe problem, the results of the present paper, and other results to prove isospectral sets of conformal metrics in dimension 3 are compact modulo gauge equivalence.