The smallest Dirac eigenvalue in a spin-conformal class and cmc immersions (Q1049680)

Let \([g_0]\) be the conformal class of a Riemannian metric and let \(\sigma\) be a spin structure on a compact manifold \(M\) of dimension \(n\geq2\). Let \(\lambda_1^\pm(g)\) be the first non-zero positive/negative eigenvalues of a metric \(g\in[g_0]\). Let \[ \lambda_{\min}^+(M,[g_0],\sigma):=\inf_{g\in[g_0]}\lambda_1^+(g) vol(M,g)^{1/n}\,. \] It is known that \(\lambda^+_{\min}\) is positive. The author examines the question of realizing the infimum. He replaces the conformal class \([g_0]\) by its \(L^\infty\) completion \(\bar{[g_0]}\). Assume that \(\lambda_{\min}^+(M,g_0,\sigma)<\lambda_{\min}^+(S^n)\). He shows that the minimum is attained by a generalized metric of the form \(g:=|\phi|^{4/(n-1)}g_0\) where \(\phi\) is a spinor of regularity \(C^2\). Such minimizers give rise to periodic branched conformal cmc immersions and has relations to the Yamabi problem. A similar result holds for \(\lambda_1^-\) where one replaces \(\lambda_1^+\) by \(|\lambda_1^-|\).