New homogeneous Einstein metrics of negative Ricci curvature (Q5937096)

The authors construct new homogeneous Einstein spaces with negative Ricci curvature using two methods. First, they call a \(k\)-dimensional subspace \(Z \subset so(V)\), \(V=\mathbb{R}^n \) a uniform if \[ \sum_{i=1}^{k}C_i^2 = c\text{Id}, \quad c \in \mathbb{R}, \] where \(C_i\) is an orthonormal basis of \(Z\) with respect to the standard metric of \(so(V)\). They associate with a uniform subspace \(Z\) a two-step nilpotent Heisenberg type metric Lie algebra \( N= V \oplus Z\) with the centre \(Z\) and a Lie bracket \(V \wedge V \to Z\) defined in terms of the metric \(\langle \cdot, \cdot\rangle \) as \[ \langle [u,v], C \rangle = \langle Cu,v\rangle, \quad u,v \in V,\;C \in Z. \] Adding to \(N\) a 1-dimensional vector space \( \mathbb{R} a\), where \(a\) is the derivation of \(N\) which acts on \(Z\) as Id and on \(V\) as \(\frac 12\text{Id}\), they get a solvable metric Lie algebra \(G = \mathbb{R} a \oplus V \oplus Z\) with \(\langle a,a\rangle =1\), \(\langle a, N\rangle =0\). The associated Lie group with the left-invariant metric will be a homogeneous Einstein manifold. Constructing a 2-parametric family of uniform 3-dimensional subspaces in \(so(6)\), the authors obtain a new family of homogeneous Einstein solvmanifolds. They prove that it contains solvmanifolds of negative sectional curvature. The second way for constructing Einstein metrics is based on deformations of the Lie algebra \(F\) of the Iwasawa group which acts simply transitively on a given symmetric space of non-compact type. Let \(G_0 = K +F = K + A +N\) be an Iwasawa decomposition of a non-compact semisimple Lie algebra and \(X_j\) a basis of \(N\) which is an eigenbasis for ad\(_{A}\) and satisfies two additional properties: 1) the bracket of any two basis vectors is a scalar multiple of another basis vector, 2) if \(X,Y,Z\) are three different vectors in the basis, then the vectors \([X,Y]\) and \([X,Z]\) are orthogonal with respect to the Killing form. Changing some basis vectors \( X_j\) to \(iX_j\), one obtains a new (real) subspace \(N'\) in the complex Lie algebra \(G = G_0 + iG_0\). If it is a subalgebra, then the Lie subalgebra \(F' = A + N' \subset G\) (equipped with the metric for which the basis of \(N'\) is orthonormal) defines a new Einstein solvmanifold. Applying this construction to different symmetric spaces, the authors obtain new examples of homogeneous Einstein metrics.