Relative mean curvature configurations for surfaces in \(\mathbb R^{n}\), \(n \geq 5\) (Q2644291)

Generalising a concept introduced by L. F. Mello in 2003 the authors define the relative mean curvature directions on a 2-surface \(S\) immersed in \(\mathbb{R}^n\), \(n \geq 4\), as follows: the curvature ellipse of \(S\) is defined as the image -- through the second fundamental form of \(S\) -- of the unit tangent vectors circle into the normal space \(N_p(S)\) at each point \(p\in S\); the vector \(H(p)\in N_p (S)\) determined by the centre of the curvature ellipse at \(p\) is known as the mean curvature vector, any normal vector \(v\in N_p(S)\) can be decomposed into a sum \(v^T+ v^\perp\) with \(v^T\) and \(v^\perp\), respectively, parallel and orthogonal to the plane determined by the curvature ellipse; now the relative mean curvature directions at a point \(p\in S\) can be defined as those inducing normal sections whose curvature vector is parallel to \(H(p)^T\). In this way one obtains two orthogonal foliations globally defined on the surface \(S\) whose critical points are the semiumbilics and the pseudo-umbilics (with inflection points considered as non-generic particular cases). The contents of this note may be described shortly as follows. In Sections 2 and 3, the basic geometrical concepts for 2-surfaces \(S\) immersed in \(\mathbb{R}^n\) are introduced, and their generic behaviour with respect to the relative positions of the mean curvature vector \(H(p)\) and the curvature ellipse at each point \(p\in S\) is analyzed. Section 4 deals with the differential equations associated to the relative mean curvature configuration. Section 5 is devoted to the description of the generic behaviour of the foliations in a neighbourhood of their critical points: semiumbilics (illustrated nicely by Figure 1/Example 5.9) and pseudo-umbilics. Finally, some global results are obtained using the Poincaré-Hopf index formula for foliations on closed orientable surfaces, for instance (Corollaries 5.13, 5.15): Any generic immersion of a 2-sphere into \(\mathbb{R}^n\) has at least 4 points at which the mean curvature vector \(H\) is orthogonal to the normal subspace determined by the curvature ellipse. Closed oriented 2-regular surfaces with non-vanishing Euler number in \(\mathbb{R}^n\), \(n\geq 5\), always have pseudo-umbilic points (minimal points considered as a particular case).