Deformation of LeBrun's ALE metrics with negative mass (Q2391886)

Let \((X, g)\) be a complete \(4\)-dimensional Riemannian manifold, \(K\) a compact subset of \(X\), \(\rho : X \rightarrow {\mathbb R}^{\geq 0}\) the distance function to a base point \(x_o \in X\), \({\mathbb B}(0, R)\) the ball in \({\mathbb R}^4\) with center at the origin and radius \(R \in {\mathbb R}^{>0}\), \(\Gamma\) a finite subgroup of \(\mathrm{SO}(4)\), acting freely on the unit sphere \(S^3 \subset {\mathbb R}^4\). The manifold \((X,g)\) is called asymptotically locally Euclidean or ALE if there exists \(\tau \in {\mathbb N}\) and diffeomorphisms \(\psi ^R : X \setminus K \rightarrow [{\mathbb R}^4 \setminus {\mathbb B}(0, R)] / \Gamma\) for sufficiently large \(R \in {\mathbb R}^{>0}\), such that \((\psi ^R_* g)_{ij} = \delta _{ij} + O(\rho ^{- \tau})\), \(\partial ^{|k|} (\psi ^R_* g) _{ij} = O( \rho ^{ - \tau - k})\) as \(R \to \infty\) for all partial derivatives of order \(k \in {\mathbb N}\). In 1988 LeBrun constructed examples of Kähler scalar-flat asymptotically locally Euclidean spaces of negative mass. Let \(r: {\mathbb C}^2 = {\mathbb R}^4 \rightarrow {\mathbb R} ^{ \geq 0}\) be a radial coordinate and \(\sigma _1, \sigma _2, \sigma _3\) be a left-invariant coframe on \(S^3 =\mathrm{SU}(2)\). For any \(n \geq 3\) LeBrun considers the metric \[ \begin{aligned} g_{LB} = \left(1 - \frac{1}{r^2} \right) ^{-1} \left( 1 + \frac{n-1}{r^2} \right) ^{-1} dr^2 + r^2 \left[ \sigma _1 ^2 + \sigma _2 ^2 + \left( 1 - \frac{1}{r^2} \right) \left( 1 + \frac{n-1}{r^2} \right) \sigma _3 ^2 \right]\end{aligned} \] on \({\mathbb C}^2\) with singularities at \(S^3\). Let us denote by \(\widehat{{\mathbb C}^2}\) the blow-up of \({\mathbb C}^2\) at all points of \(S^3\). The cyclic group \({\mathbb Z}_n < {\mathbb C}^*\), \(n \geq 3\), of the \(n\)-th root of unity admits a diagonal action \({\mathbb Z} _n \times {\mathbb C}^2 \rightarrow {\mathbb C}^2\), \((\zeta, (z,w)) \mapsto (\zeta z, \zeta w)\) on \({\mathbb C}^2\), which extends to \(\widehat{{\mathbb C}^2}\). The quotient \(\widehat{{\mathbb C}^2} / {\mathbb Z}_n\) has a unique singular point at the origin. The resolution of this isolated singularity is diffeomorphic to the total space of the holomorphic line bundle \(\mathcal{O}(-n) \rightarrow {\mathbb C} {\mathbb P} ^1\). The metric \(\widehat{g_{LB}}\) on \(\mathcal{O}(-n)\), induced by \(g_{LB}\) is non-singular, Kähler scalar-flat with respect to the complex structure of \(\mathcal{O}(-n)\) and asymptotically locally Euclidean at infinity. The mass of \(\widehat{g_{LB}}\) is \(- 4 \pi ^2 (n-2) <0\) for \(n \geq 3\). After an appropriate conformal change, \(\widehat{g_{LB}}\) extends to a one-point compactification \(\widehat{ \mathcal{O}(-n)} = \mathcal{O}(-n) \cup \{ \infty \}\) as an orbifold anti-self-dual (ASD) structure. The pair \(( \widehat{\mathcal{O}(-n)}, \widehat{g_{LB}} )\) is called LeBrun orbifold. Viaclovsky has proved that for \(n \geq 4\) the moduli space of anti-self-dual orbifold metrics near \(( \widehat{\mathcal{O}(-n)}, \widehat{g_{LB}})\) is of dimension at least \(4n-12\). He sets the problem of obtaining the conformal automorphism groups and local dimensions of the moduli space of anti-self-dual asymptotically locally Euclidean deformations of \(( \widehat{ \mathcal{O} (-n)}, \widehat{g_{LB}})\) for all \(n \geq 3\). Moreover, he asks for the dimension of the moduli space of the Kähler scalar-flat deformations of \(( \widehat{\mathcal{O}(-n)}, \widehat{g_{LB}})\). The article under review answers these questions, making use of an explicit description of the twistor space \(Z_{LB}\) of \(( \mathcal{O}(-n), \widehat{g_{LB}})\). In order to formulate precisely, let us denote by \([g]\) the conformal class of a metric \(g\) and put \(\mathrm{Aut} _0 [g]\) for the identity component of the conformal automorphism group of \([g]\). For an arbitrary open neighborhood \(B\) of the origin in \({\mathbb R}^{4n-8}\), consider the versal family \(\{ [g_t] \, | \, t \in B \}\) of the anti-self-dual structures on \(\widehat{\mathcal{O}(-n)}\) with \([g_0]\) corresponding to \(( \widehat{ \mathcal{O}(-n)}, \widehat{g_{LB}})\). For \(n=3\) the author shows the existence of a sufficiently small \(B \subset {\mathbb R}^{4n-8}\), such that for any \(t \in B \setminus \{ 0 \}\) the moduli space is \(1\)-dimensional at \([g_t]\) and \(\mathrm{Aut} _0 [g_t] \simeq\mathrm U(1)\). If \(n=4\) then a sufficiently small \(B\) contains \(\mathrm U(2)\)-invariant, mutually disjoint connected subsets \(B_0, B_1, B_2\), such that for any \(t \in B_0\) the moduli space of the anti-self-dual structures at \([g_t]\) is \(1\)-dimensional and \(\mathrm{Aut} _0 [g_t] \simeq \mathrm{SU}(2)\). For any \(t \in B_1 \cup B_2\) the conformal class \([g_t]\) has \(\mathrm{Aut} _0 [g_t] \simeq\mathrm U(1)\). In the case of \(t \in B_1\), the moduli space of the \(\mathrm U(1)\)-invariant anti-self-dual structures is \(1\)-dimensional at \([g_t]\), while for \(t \in B_2\) the corresponding moduli space is \(3\)-dimensional. For \(n \geq 5\) let \(\left[ \frac{n}{2} \right]\) be the maximal natural number, which is less or equal to \(\frac{n}{2}\). Then a sufficiently small \(B\) contains \(\mathrm U(2)\)-invariant, mutually disjoint connected subsets \(B_1, \cdots , B_{\left[ \frac{n}{2} \right]}\), such that \(\mathrm{Aut} _0 [g_t] \simeq\mathrm U(1)\) for all \(t \in B_1 \cup \cdots\cup B_{\left[ \frac{n}{2} \right] }\) and \(\mathrm{Aut} _0 [g_t] = \{ e \}\) for all \(t \in B \setminus \left( B_1 \cup \cdots\cup B_{\left[ \frac{n}{2} \right] } \right)\). Moreover, the moduli space of the \(\mathrm U(1)\)-invariant anti-self-dual structures is \(1\)-dimensional at \([g_t]\) with \(t \in B_1\) and \(3\)-dimensional at \([g_t]\) with \(t \in B_2 \cup \cdots \cup B_{\left[ \frac{n}{2} \right] }\). The moduli space at \([g_t]\) with \(t \in B \setminus \left( B_1 \cup \cdots \cup B_{\left[ \frac{n}{2} \right]} \right)\) is of dimension \(4n-12\). The result is derived by a detailed analysis of the local deformations of the twistor space \(Z_{LB}\) of \(( \widehat{\mathcal{O}(-n)}, \widehat{g_{LB}})\). First of all, \(H^2 ( \Theta _{Z_{LB}}) =0\) and the local deformations of \(Z_{LB}\) are unobstructed. The natural \(\mathrm U(2)\)-action on \({\mathbb C}^2\) descends to an isometric \(\mathrm U(2)\)-action on \(\widehat{ \mathcal{O}( -n)}\) and induces a \(\mathrm U(2)\)-action on the parameter space of the Kuranishi family of \(Z_{LB}\), after identifying it with an open neighborhood of the origin in \(H^1 ( \Theta _{Z_{LB}})\). The explicit description of this action provides the aforementioned result. Let \(g_0 = \widehat{g_{LB}}\) be the LeBrun metric and \(J_0\) the standard complex structure on the \(4\)-manifold \(\mathcal{O}(-n)\) with \(n \geq 3\). The article shows the existence of a \(1\)-dimensional smooth family \(\{ (J_t, g_t) \}\) of complex structures \(J_t\) and asymptotically locally Euclidean, anti-self-dual Kähler metrics \(g_t\), such that for any \(t \neq 0\) the metric \(g_t\) is not conformal to the LeBrun metric, \(( \mathcal{O}(-n), J_t)\), is biholomorphic to an affine surface \(S_n\) in \({\mathbb C}^{n+1}\) and the Kähler surface \(( \mathcal{O}(-n), J_t, g_t)\) admits a non-trivial \(\mathrm U(1)\)-action. In order to describe the affine surface \(S_n\), let us consider the ruled surface \({\mathbb F}_{n-2} := {\mathbb P} ( \mathcal{O} (n-2) \oplus \mathcal{O} )\) over \({\mathbb C} {\mathbb P} ^1\), the unique negative section \(\Gamma\) of \({\mathbb F}_2\) and a fiber \(F\) of the ruling. Then the linear system of \(\Gamma + (n-1) F\) induces an embedding \({\mathbb F}_{n-2} \subset {\mathbb C} {\mathbb P} ^{n+1}\) and \(S_n\) is the complement of a generic hyperplane section to the image of \({\mathbb F}_{n-2}\) in \({\mathbb C} {\mathbb P} ^{n+1}\). The argument is based on a theorem of Pontecorvo. Let \(M\) be a \(4\)-manifold with twistor space \(Z_M\) and \(K_{Z_M}\) be the canonical divisor of \(Z_M\). Pontecorvo shows that an anti-self-dual conformal structure on \(M\) admits a Kähler representative if and only if there exist divisors \(D\), \(\overline{D}\) on \(Z_M\), such that \(D + \overline{D}\) belongs to the linear system of \(K_{Z_M} ^{ - 1/2}\) and \(D\) maps diffeomorphically onto \(M\) by the twistor fibration.