Einstein solvmanifolds: Existence and non-existence questions (Q537866)

The authors investigate solvable Lie groups admitting a left invariant Einstein metric. Let \((S,\langle ,\rangle)\) be a connected solvable Lie group with a left invariant metric and \(\mathfrak s\) its Lie algebra. Then, \(\mathfrak n=[\mathfrak s,\mathfrak s]\) is nilpotent and if \(\mathfrak s=\mathfrak a \oplus\mathfrak n\) is an orthogonal decomposition then, if \((S,\langle,\rangle)\) is Einstein, we have \([\mathfrak a, \mathfrak a]=0\), i.e., Einstein solvmanifolds are of standard type. The investigation of standard Einstein solvmanifolds can be further reduced to the rank one case \(\dim \mathfrak a =1\). A nilpotent Lie algebra \(\mathfrak n\) is said to be an Einstein nilradical if it admits an inner product \(\langle \cdot,\cdot\rangle\) such that there is a standard metric solvable extension of \((\mathfrak n,\langle \cdot,\cdot\rangle)\) which is Einstein. Let \(V=\bigwedge^2\mathbb R^n\otimes \mathbb R^n\) and \(\mathcal N=\{\mu\in V:\mu \text{ satisfies the Jacobi identity and is nilpotent}\}\). For a nilpotent Lie algebra \(\mathfrak n=(\mathbb R^n,\mu)\), there is a unique derivation \(D\in \text{Der}(\mu)\) such that, for the Lie algebra \(\mathfrak s=\mathbb R H\oplus\mathbb R^n\), \([\cdot,\cdot]\) with \([H,X]=DX\), \([X,Y]=\mu(X,Y)\), \(X,Y\in \mathfrak n\) can admit an Einstein solvmanifold \(S_{\mu}\) modelled on \((\mathfrak s, \langle \cdot,\cdot\rangle)\), where \(\langle H, X\rangle=0\), \(\langle H,H\rangle=1\). The group \(GL_n\) acts on \(V\) and \(\mathcal N\) is a \(GL_n\)-invariant algebraic subset. The authors study the moment map of the action of the group \(GL_n\) and use geometric invariant theory to find Einstein nilradicals \(\mu\in\mathcal N\). They define a \(GL_n\)-invariant stratification for \(\mathcal N\) and use it to determine whether a given nilpotent Lie algebra can be the nilradical of a rank one Einstein solvmanifold. They present examples of \(\mathbb N\)-graded (2-step) nilpotent algebras which are not Einstein nilradicals. They give a classification of 7-dimensional 6-step nilpotent algebras which are Einstein nilradicals. Using graphs, the authors study 2-step nilpotent Lie algebras giving criteria for which graphs the associated Lie algebra is an Einstein nilradical.