Thin \(r\)-neighborhoods of embedded geodesics with finite length and negative Jacobi operator are strongly convex (Q372510)

Take an embedded finite-length geodesic \(\gamma_0\) in a complete Riemannian manifold. Suppose that \(\gamma_0\) has negative Jacobi operator. Then every sufficiently small tubular neighborhood of \(\gamma_0\) is strongly convex. The proof relies on a maximum principle: For any other geodesic \(\gamma\) in a small enough tubular neighborhood around \(\gamma_0\), the distance \(d\left(\gamma(t),\gamma_0\right)\) is maximal at one or both of the ends of \(\gamma\); picture the geodesics of the hyperbolic plane, in contrast to those of the sphere.