The sharp energy-capacity inequality on convex symplectic manifolds (Q1713954)

Darboux theorem says that the local geometry of every symplectic manifold is that of the model $(\mathbb{R}^{2n},\omega_0)$, with $\omega_0$ the standard symplectic form. Therefore symplectic invariants are of global nature. Among such invariants one counts the \textit{Gromov width}, the \textit{displacement energy} and the \textit{Hofer-Zehnder capacity}. The Gromov width and the Hofer-Zehnder capacity are crucial ingredients in the proof of the celebrated non-squeezing theorem, one of the most peculiar features of symplectic geometry. Back in 1995, \textit{F. Lalonde} and \textit{D. McDuff} proved that, on any symplectic manifold, the Gromov width is at most twice the displacement energy [Ann. Math. (2) 141, No. 2, 349--371 (1995; Zbl 0829.53025)]; this is known as \textit{energy capacity inequality for Gromov width}. \textit{H. Hofer} and \textit{E. Zehnder} proved that, for the standard model $(\mathbb{R}^{2n},\omega_0)$, the Hofer-Zehnder capacity is at most equal to the displacement energy [Symplectic invariants and Hamiltonian dynamics. Basel: Birkhäuser (2011; Zbl 1223.37001)]. One can also consider the $\pi_1$-sensitive Hofer-Zehnder capacity; while the Hofer-Zehnder capacity is concerned with the (non) existence of periodic orbits of Hamiltonian functions, the $\pi_1$-sensitive Hofer-Zehnder capacity restricts to \textit{contractible} periodic orbits; thus the former is always at most the latter. \textit{M. Schwarz} proved that the $\pi_1$-sensitive Hofer-Zehnder capacity is at most twice the displacement energy on a compact, symplectically aspherical manifold [Pac. J. Math. 193, No. 2, 419--461 (2000; Zbl 1023.57020)]. The same was proved for open convex symplectic manifolds in [\textit{U. Frauenfelder} and \textit{F. Schlenk}, Isr. J. Math. 159, 1--56 (2007; Zbl 1126.53056)]. In [Contemp. Math. 387, 129--152 (2005; Zbl 1094.53079)], \textit{U. Frauenfelder} et al., got rid of the factor 2, obtaining the \textit{$\pi_1$-sensitive sharp energy capacity inequality} for this class of manifolds. The inequality was proved, for any closed symplectic manifold, in [\textit{M. Usher}, Commun. Contemp. Math. 12, No. 3, 457--473 (2010; Zbl 1200.53077)]. The Gromov width is smaller than or equal to Hofer-Zehnder capacity, hence this kind of inequalities strengthens that of Lalonde and McDuff. As proved by Hofer and Zehnder, an important application of these inequalities is to the Weinstein conjecture for displaceable hypersurfaces of contact type in symplectic manifolds. In the paper under review, the author proves the $\pi_1$-sensitive sharp energy capacity inequality for a certain class of symplectic manifolds with boundary, namely \textit{convex} symplectic manifolds. This is by definition a symplectic manifold $M$ which is exhausted by a sequence $\{M_n\}_{n\in\mathbb{N}}$ of nested, codimension-0 compact submanifolds such that, for each $n$, $\partial M_n$ is a contact-type hypersurface. In order to prove the inequality, the author follows the approach of Frauenfelder and Schlenk [Zbl 1126.53056] and studies the Floer homology of the symplectic completion $\widehat{M}$ of a convex symplectic manifold $M$ with respect to a Hamiltonian function which is linear on $\widehat{M}\setminus M$. Using ideas of [\textit{S. Lanzat}, Beitr. Algebra Geom. 57, No. 2, 361--390 (2016; Zbl 1339.53083)], the author extracts some spectral invariants from the Floer complex; these invariants allow to prove the result.