A tale of two conformally invariant metrics (Q2488770)

Suppose that \(G\) is a domain in the complex plane \({\mathbf C}\) such that \({\mathbf C}\setminus G\) has positive logarithmic capacity. The \textit{Harnack distance} on \(G\) is defined by \[ d_G(z,w)=\sup_u | \log u(z)-\log u(w)| , \] where the supremum is taken over all functions \(u\) positive and harmonic in \(G\). The Harnack distance has the property of conformal invariance and coincides with the hyperbolic distance \(\rho_G\) when \(G\) is the unit disk \({\mathbf D}\). The main result of this well-written paper is that for all \(G\), \(d_G(z,w)\leq \rho_G(z,w)\), with equality only when either \(G\) is simply connected, or there exists a conformal map \(f\) of \(G\) onto \({\mathbf D}\setminus \{0\}\) such that the points \(f(z)\) and \(f(w)\) lie on the same radius of \({\mathbf D}\).