On conformally flat Lorentz parabolic manifolds (Q2248109)

A manifold \(M\) of dimension \(2n+2\) is called a \textit{conformally flat Fefferman-Lorentz manifold of parabolic type} if it is locally modelled on \((\hat{\mathrm U}(n+1,1), S^{2n+1,1})\). Here, \(S^{2n+1,1}\) denotes the projectivisation of the null-cone in \(\mathbb{R}^{n+4}_2\). The universal cover \(\tilde{M}\) of such a manifold \(M\) admits a map \(\tilde{M}\to S^1\times S^{2n+1}\), which is a covering onto its image \(\Omega\), and if the holonomy group \(\Gamma\) acts properly discontinuously, then \(M\) finitely covers \(\Omega/\Gamma\). The author studies \textit{compact} conformally flat Fefferman-Lorentz manifolds of parabolic type via these quotients \(\Omega/\Gamma\). The main result is Theorem 2.1: Let \(\Omega/\Gamma\) be a \((2n+2)\)-dimensional compact conformally flat Fefferman-Lorentz manifold of parabolic type. If it admits a one-parameter group \(H\) that does not lift to a central subgroup in \(\text{U}(n+1,1)\), then \(\Omega/\Gamma\) is a Seifert fibre space over a spherical CR-orbifold. Therefore, a finite covering of \(\Omega/\Gamma\) is a Fefferman-Lorentz manifold. It follows a list of the five classes of compact conformally flat Fefferman-Lorentz manifolds of parabolic type. An outline of the proof, as given by the author: (i) There exists an \(S^1\)-action on \(\Omega\) such that \(S^1 H\) belongs to the centraliser of \(\Gamma\) in \(\text{U}(n+1,1)\). (ii) The conformal action of \(S^1H\) on \(\Omega\) induces a spherical CR-action of \(G=S^1H/S^1\) on \(W=\Omega/S^1\). There is an equivariant principal bundle \(S^1\to(\Gamma,\Omega)\to(Q,W)\), where the action of \(Q=\Gamma/(\Gamma\cap S^1)\) is a spherical CR-action on \(W\). (iii) The fixed point set \(F\) of \(G\) in \(S^{2n+1}\) is invariant under \(Q\) since \(Q\) commutes with \(G\). The (hyperbolic) limit set \(L(Q)\) of \(Q\) lies in \(F\) whenever \(F\) contains more than one point. (iv) Hence \(W\) is determined as \(S^{2n+1}\backslash L(Q)\). The \(\Omega/\Gamma\) is a Seifert fibration over a spherical CR-orbifold. In particular, a Heisenberg infra-nilmanifold \(N/Q\) and an infra-Hopf orbifold \(S^{2n}\times_F S^1\) occur as spherical CR-orbifolds. Section 3 contains some examples of compact conformally flat Fefferman-Lorentz manifolds of parabolic type that are not conformally flat Fefferman-Lorentz manifolds. Then the author characterises development maps in the following two theorems. Theorem 4.1: Let \(M\) be a \((2n+2)\)-dimensional compact conformally flat Fefferman-Lorentz manifold of parabolic type which admits a one-parameter group \(H\) in \(\text{Conf}_F(M)\). Let \(\rho(H)\) be the holonomy image of a lift of \(H\) to \(\tilde{M}\). If the group \(\mathbb{R}\rho(H)\) has a two-dimensional orbit at every point in the image \(\text{dev}(\tilde{M})\), then \(\text{dev}\) is a covering map. Theorem 4.5: Suppose that the holonomy group \(\rho(\pi)\) is discrete in \(\tilde{\mathrm U}(n+1,1)\). If the development map \(\text{dev}:\tilde{M}\to\mathbb{R}\times S^{2n+1}\) is not surjective, then \(\text{dev}\) is a covering map onto its image. In Section 5, compact conformally flat Fefferman-Lorentz manifolds of parabolic type are compared to Lorentz similarity manifolds. The author finds that one of the former type cannot be conformally equivalent to one of the latter.