Quaternionic-Kähler manifolds and conformal geometry (Q1121534)

Quaternionic-Kähler manifolds are 4k-dimensional manifolds, \(k\geq 2\), with holonomy group \(Sp(k)Sp(1):=Sp(k)\times Sp(1)/{\mathbb{Z}}_ 2.\) In this paper the author considers how many different quaternionic-Kähler geometries exist in dimension 4k. He shows that for every real-analytic conformal pseudo-Riemannian metric of signature (3,k-1) one can construct a quaternionic Kähler 4k-manifold, such that the initial data (i.e. the original conformal metric) may be read off from the asymptotics of the quaternionic-Kähler geometry. In order to realize this idea, the author shows that Salamon's construction of a twistor space from a quaternionic manifold is invertible in an appropriate sense. Further, he proceeds to produce candidate twistor spaces. In the last section the resulting geometry is examined after the twistor-theoretic scaffolding has been wheeled away.