Global curvature for rectifiable loops (Q1566411)

For three points \(x,y,z\in \mathbb{R}^3\) let \(R(x,y,z)\) denote the radius of the smallest circle through these points. For every closed rectifiable unit speed curve \(\gamma: [0,L]\to \mathbb{R}^3\) the authors define the global radius of curvature \({\mathcal R}[\gamma]:= \inf R(\gamma(s_1), \gamma(s_2), \gamma(s_3))\), \(0\leq s_1< s_2< s_3< L\), and show that \({\mathcal R} [\gamma]> 0\) if and only if \(\gamma\) is simply closed and differentiable with a Lipschitz continuous derivative \(\gamma'\). For \(\theta\in (0,{\mathcal R}[\gamma])\) the curve \(\gamma\) possesses a tubular neighbourhood (in the sense of differential geometry) of radius \(\theta\). Considering this tube as a rope with centerline \(\gamma\) the authors use a moving unit normal field \(N\) along \(\gamma\) in order to describe a twist of the rope and they study the linking number of \(\gamma\) and the ``thread'' \(s\mapsto \gamma(s)+ \theta N(s)\). The number \({\mathcal R}[\gamma]^{-1}\) is called the global curvature of \(\gamma\); besides they introduce the concepts of global and local curvature at any point \(\gamma(s)\) without further assumptions on the smoothness of the curve. The material of this article is the geometric background of the authors' paper ``Euler Lagrange equations for nonlinearly elastic rods with self-contact'' [Arch. Ration. Mech. Anal. 168, No. 1, 35--82 (2003; Zbl 1030.74029)].