Minimizers of higher order gauge invariant functionals (Q282807)

The authors find two higher-order analogs of the Yang-Mills gauge functional for which the analytic theory of Uhlenbeck-Sedláček can be reproduced most closely. One of them is a generalization of the bi-Yang-Mills functional of Bejan-Urakawa, and is given by \[ Y_n(A):=\begin{cases}\int_M|(d_Ad_A^*)^{\frac{n-2}2}F_A|^2+|F_A|^ndx, n\mathrm{ even}\\ \int_M|d_A^* (d_Ad_A^*)^{\frac{n-3}2}F_A|^2+|F_A|^ndx, n\mathrm{ odd}.\end{cases} \] The other involves the full covariant derivative \(D_A\) rather than just the differential: \[ Z_n(A):=\int_M|(D_A)^{n-2}F_A|^2+|F_A|^2dx\,. \] Both functionals are gauge invariant, and scale invariant in the critical dimension \(\dim M=2n\). It turns out that a natural generalization of the classical space \(W^{1,2}\) for minimizers is \(W^{n-1,2}\) rather than \(W^{1,n}\), as previously expected. Either of the two functionals controls the \(W^{n-2,2}\) norms of \(F_A\) (``global'' coercivity), and the \(W^{n-1,2}\) norms of \(A\) (in the Uhlenbeck gauge) in dimensions \(\leq 2n\) (``local'' coercivity). A recent result of Petrache-Rivière also generalizes: a point singularity of a bundle can be removed if there is a \(W^{n-1,2}\) connection around the point. Weak solutions to the Euler-Lagrange equations in dimensions \(\leq 2n\) are smooth. In the subcritical dimensions \(<2n\) the minimizers exist even on the original bundle (assuming the compact structure group), and are smooth. In the critical dimension \(2n\) the Uhlenbeck gauge can be chosen only away from finitely many points, where removable singularities may develop. After their removal the minimizers turn out to live on a new bundle, which however shares all the Chern classes with the original one, and the minimizers are still smooth.