Slow quasiregular mappings and universal coverings (Q2472320)

The notion of a slow quasiregular mapping from a subdomain of the \(n\)-dimensional Euclidean space into a connected and oriented Riemannian \(n\)-manifold \(N\) is introduced. For \(a_0>0\), a quasiregular mapping \(f:{\mathbb R}^n\setminus \overline{B}^n(a_0) \to N\) is said to be slow if \[ \int_{B^n(r)\setminus \overline{B}^n(a)}J_f\,dm\to\infty, \quad\text{and}\quad \frac{1}{r^\alpha} \int_{B^n(r)\setminus \overline{B}^n(a)} J_f\,dm\to 0, \] as \(r\to\infty\), for all \(\alpha>0\) and \(a>a_0\). An entire quasiregular mapping is said to be slow if its restriction to \({\mathbb R}^n\setminus \overline{B}^n\) is slow, and a quasiregular mapping from the punctured unit ball \(B^n\setminus\{0\}\) is slow if \(f\circ \sigma\) is slow for a Möbius transformation \(\sigma\) taking \({\mathbb R}^n\setminus \overline{B}^n\) onto \(B^n\setminus\{0\}\). By using this terminology, Theorem 1.11 of \textit{M. Bonk} and \textit{J. Heinonen} [Acta Math. 186, No. 2, 219--238 (2001; Zbl 1088.30011)] can be interpreted as follows: a closed quasiregularly elliptic manifold \(N\) receiving a slow entire quasiregular mapping is cohomologous to \({\mathbb S}^n\), i.e. \(H^*(N)=H^*({\mathbb S}^n)\). Here \(H^*(M)\) denotes the de Rham cohomology ring of the manifold \(M\). Several interesting results involving slow quasiregular mappings are established. The main result is the following. Let \(n\geq 2\) and suppose that \(N\) is a closed, connected and oriented Riemannian \(n\)-manifold receiving a slow quasiregular mapping from \(B^n\setminus\{0\}\). Then \(H^*(N)\) is either \(H^*({\mathbb S}^n)\) or \(H^*({\mathbb S}^{n-1}\times {\mathbb S}^1)\). Examples showing that this result is sharp in the sense that there exist slow quasiregular mappings from \(B^n\setminus\{0\}\) into \({\mathbb S}^n\) and \({\mathbb S}^{n-1}\times {\mathbb S}^1\) are also given. Further results concerning connection of slow quasiregular mappings to mappings of bounded length distortion [see e.g. \textit{O. Martio, J. Väisälä}, Math. Ann. 282, No. 3, 423--443 (1988; Zbl 0632.35021)] and universal covers are shown, along with exact growth bounds and a global homeomorphism-type result for slow quasiregular mappings.