Distribution of eigenvalues for the modular group (Q1918076)

Free motion on constant negative curvature surfaces generated by discrete groups is unique within the context of classical and semiclassical (quantum) chaos. The Selberg trace formula is known to provide an exact relationship between the density of eigenvalues of the Laplace-Beltrami operator and classical periodic orbits (geodesic on the surface). The model shows an unexpected anomaly: the distribution of energy levels is quite close to a Poisson distribution, normally typical of integrable systems and not to random matrix ensembles. The anomaly has been attributed to the fact that the arithmetic groups form a specific subgroup of motions in this case. The purpose of this paper is to compute explicitly the two-point correlation function for the energy levels of the modular domain and the corresponding billiard. That involves a generalization of the Hardy-Littlewood method, originally devised to compute the distribution of prime numbers. The outcome strongly depends on number-theoretical properties of the multiplicities of the periodic orbits of the modular group.