On the growth rate of periodic orbits for vector fields (Q1731559)

Let $M$ be a closed smooth Riemannian manifold and $\mathcal{X}^1(M)$ the set of all $C^1$ vector fields on $M$ endowed with the $C^1$ norm. Denote by $(\phi_t)$ the flow generated by $X$, and for $x\in M$ denote by $[x]$ its orbit and by $P_T(X)$ the set of orbits with minimal period $\pi(x)\in(0,T]$. Let then $\#P_T(X):=\sum_{[x]\in P_T(X)}\pi(x)$. The authors prove that there is a dense $G_\delta$-set $\mathcal{R}$ in $\mathcal{X}^1(M)$ such that $\limsup_{T\to\infty}\frac1T\log\# P_T(X)\ge h_{\text{top}}(X):=h_{\text{top}}\phi_1$ where $h_{\text{top}}$ denotes the topological entropy. The proof is extremely difficult since the vector fields in $\mathcal{X}^1(M)$ are allowed to have singularities. A vector field $X\in\mathcal{X}^1(M)$ is said to be star if there is a neighbourhood $\mathcal{U}$ of $X$ such that every critical element in $\mathcal{U}$ is hyperbolic. The authors then prove that there is a dense $G_\delta$-set $\mathcal{R}$ in $\mathcal{X}^1(M)$ such that $\limsup_{T\to\infty}\frac1T\log\#P_T(X)=\infty$ for every $X\in\mathcal{R}$ which is not star. A main role in the proof is played by the notion of Osedelec splitting: denote by $\mathcal{N}^X$ the normal bundle of $X$ and let $x\in M$ be a non-singular point and $v\in\mathcal{N}_x$. Denote by $\psi_t^X(v)$ the orthogonal projection of $\phi_t^Xv$ on $\mathcal{N}_{\phi_t^Xx}$ along the flow direction $X(\phi_t^X(x))$; this is the linear Poincaré flow. Choose an invariant measure $\mu$ of $(\phi_t)$ which is not concentrated on the set of singular points of $X$. Then for $\mu$-almost every $x\in X$ there is a measurable splitting $\mathcal{N}_x=\bigoplus_{i=1}^{k(x)}\mathcal{E}_i(x)$ and numbers $\lambda_1(x)<\lambda_2(x)<\dotsb<\lambda_k(x)$ where $1\le k(x)\le d-1$ (where presumably $d=\dim M$) such that $\lim_{t\to\infty}\frac1t\log\|\psi_tv\|=\lambda_i(x)$ for $v\in\mathcal{E}_x\setminus\{0\}$ and $i=1,\dotsc,k(x)$. The $\lambda_i(x)$ are the Ljapunov exponents of the Osedelec subbundle $\mathcal{E}_i(x)$ [\textit{A. Katok} and \textit{B. Hasselblatt}, Introduction to the modern theory of dynamical systems. With a supplement by Anatole Katok and Leonardo Mendoza. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press (1997; Zbl 0878.58019)].