Ahlfors' currents in higher dimension (Q2380712)

Let \(f: V \rightarrow X\) be a nondegenerate holomorphic map between an open connected complex manifold \(V\) of dimension \(k\) and a compact Hermitian manifold \((X,\omega)\) of dimension \(m\geq k\). Let \(\tau: V \rightarrow [0,\infty)\) be an exhaustion function and \(V(r)=\tau^{-1}([0,r])\). An Ahlfors current is a positive closed current of bidimension \((k,k)\) which is the limit of a sequence \[ \frac{f_*[V(r_n)]}{\text{Vol}(f(V(r_n)))} \] where \(r_n\rightarrow \infty\) and \[ \text{Vol}(f(V(r_n))) := \int_{V(r_n)} f^* \omega^k \] is the volume of \(f(V(r_n))\) counted with multiplicity. When \(V=\mathbb{C}\), these currents are fundamental tools in the study of hyperbolicity of \(X\). In the present paper, the author gives two criteria which permit to construct Ahlfors currents in \(X\). Sufficient conditions are formulated in terms of the degree functions \[ t_k(r) = \int_{V(r)} f^* \omega^k, \] which is the volume of \(f(V(r))\) counted with multiplicity, and \[ t_{k-1}(r) = \int_{V(r)} i\partial\tau\wedge\overline{\partial\tau}\wedge f^* \omega^{k-1}. \] The main difficulty in the construction of an Ahlfors current is to show that a limit \(f_*[V(r_n)]/\text{Vol}(f(V(r_n)))\) is actually closed if the right hypotheses are imposed on \(f\). The central tool in the present paper is the estimate \[ \|\partial f_*[V(r)]\|^2 \leq K(X) t_{k-1}'(r) t_k'(r), \] where \(K(X)\) is a constant which depends only on \((X,\omega)\) and \[ \|\partial f_*[V(r)]\|:=\sup_{\Psi\in\mathcal{F}(k-1,k)} |\langle \partial f_*[V(r)],\Psi\rangle| \] with \(\mathcal{F}(k-1,k)\) the set of smooth \((k-1,k)\)-forms \(\Psi\) such that \(\|\Psi\|:=\max_{x\in X} \|\Psi(x)\|\leq 1\).