On quasisymmetric mappings between ultrametric spaces (Q2062354)

The paper under review investigates quasisymmetric mappings between ultrametric spaces. Recall that an ultrametric space \((X,d)\) is a metric space where the triangle inequality is replaced by the stronger condition that \[ d(x,y)\leq \max\{d(x,z),d(z,y)\} \] for all \(x\), \(y\),~and~\(z\) in~\(X\). An \emph{embedding} is a homeomorphism on its image. Given two metric spaces \((X,d)\) and \((Y,\rho)\), we say that an embedding \(f\colon X\to Y\) is \emph{\(\eta\)\nobreakdash-quasisymmeric} if there is a homeomorphism \(\eta\colon [0,\infty)\to [0,\infty)\) so that \[ d(x,a)\leq td(x,b)\quad \text{implies}\quad \rho(f(x),f(a))\leq \eta(t)\rho(f(x),f(b)) \] for all points \(a\), \(b\),~and~\(x\) in~\(X\) and for all \(t>0\). The authors show that \(\eta\)\nobreakdash-quasisymmetric embeddings between ultrametric spaces map bounded subspaces to bounded subspaces. More precisely, if \(0<\mathrm{diam} A,\mathrm{diam} B<\infty\), then \[ \frac{1}{\eta\left(\frac{\mathrm{diam} B}{\mathrm{diam} A}\right)}\leq \frac{\mathrm{diam} f(A)}{\mathrm{diam} f(B)}\leq \eta\left(\frac{\mathrm{diam} A}{\mathrm{diam} B}\right). \] This is an improvement of Theorem~2.5 in [\textit{P. Tukia} and \textit{J. Väisälä}, Ann.\ Acad.\ Sci.\ Fenn., Ser.~A~I, 5, 97--114 (1980; Zbl 0403.54005)] A further result is that if the target space~\((Y,\rho)\) of an \(\eta\)\nobreakdash-quasisymmetric embedding \(f\colon X\to Y\) with \(\eta(1)=1\) is a metric space, then \((f(X),\rho)\) is also an ultrametric space. If \(f\colon X\to Y\) is a surjective \(\eta\)\nobreakdash-quasisymmetric embedding with \(\eta(1)=1\), then the images of balls under~\(f\) are balls as well (and the same is true for \(f^{-1}\)). Further results are stated in terms of graph theory using the connection between certain graphs and ultrametric spaces.