Generalized metrics and generalized twistor spaces (Q2633054)

The twistor space of a Riemannian \(2m\)-manifold \((M,g)\) can be understood as the bundle whose fibre at each point consists of linear complex structures compatible with the metric. On the other hand, generalized complex geometry is a recent approach to geometric structures that encompasses symplectic and complex geometry by using the generalized tangent bundle \(TM\oplus T^* M\). Just as complex structures have a generalized analogue, one can also talk about generalized metrics, which are rank-\(2m\) subbundles \(E\subset TM\oplus T^* M\) where the restriction of the natural pairing of \(TM\oplus T^* M\) is positive definite (they can be equivalently described by a usual Riemannian metric and a \(2\)-form). The work under review aims to study the generalized twistor space which is pointwise defined by linear generalized complex structures compatible with a given generalized metric. Twistor spaces of generalized complex structures, on an even-dimensional manifold \(M\), were considered by the author and \textit{O. Mushkarov} in [J. Geom. Phys. 56, 1623--1636 (2006; Zbl 1095.53037)]: At each \(p\in M\), they considered the generalized complex structures compatible with the canonical orientation of \(T_pM\oplus T^*_p M\). They then defined, upon a choice of a linear connection, analogues of the almost complex structures in the usual twistor space: the Atiyah-Hitchin-Singer one, for which they study its integrability in the generalized setting, and an always non-integrable one defined by Eells-Salamon. When starting with a Riemannian \(4\)-manifold \((M,g)\), the twistor space of which is pointwise given by linear generalized complex structures compatible with \(g\) was considered in [\textit{G. Deschamps}, Math. Z., 279, 703--721 (2015; Zbl 1331.53069)]. Again, the integrability of the analogue of the Atiyah-Hitchin-Singer almost complex structure was also characterized, this time, in the four resulting connected components. The article under review has a structure similar to the previous works but goes beyond by considering the case of a generalized metric \(E\), which is the natural one in this context. The decomposition of \(TM\oplus T^* M\) into the subbundles \(E\) and \(E^\perp\) induces a splitting of the generalized twistor space (at each point linear generalized complex structures compatible with \(E\)) into two usual twistor spaces, those of complex structures on the fibres of \(E\) and \(E^\perp\) compatible with the positive-definite metrics induced by the pairing. The two possible almost complex structures in the usual twistor space and certain splitting upon a choice of linear connections (which may come from \(E\) itself) give rise to a total of four generalized almost complex structures on the generalized twistor space, defined in Section 3. Three of them are not integrable, whereas the integrability of the first one, which somehow corresponds to using the Atiyah-Hitchin-Singer structure everywhere, is studied in detail. In Section 6, several conditions are given for the integrability of the almost complex structure again in each of the four components in which the generalized twistor space is divided. Finally, in Section 7, an isomorphism between the twistor spaces corresponding to two generalized metrics inducing the same Riemannian metric and \(2\)-forms differing by a closed form is spelled out.