Symmetry in complex contact geometry (Q422037)

Recall that a complex contact manifold is a \((2n+1)\)-dimensional complex manifold \((M, J)\) with a holomorphic \(2n\)-dimensional subbundle \(\mathcal H\) of the holomorphic tangent bundle that is locally given as the kernel of holomorphic 1-forms \(\{\eta\}\) such that \(\eta \wedge d\eta^n\neq 0.\) A complex contact structure on \(M\) is given by a collection \((g,\{u\}, \{G\},\{U\})\), where \(g\) is a Hermitian metric on \(M\), \(\{u\}\) is a family of local real 1-forms defined on an atlas of \(M\) such that \(u+(u\circ J)i\) is a non-zero multiple of \(\eta,\) \(\{G\}\) is a family of endomorphisms on the real tangent bundle of \(M\), and \(\{U\}\) is a family of real vector fields on \(M\), both defined on the same atlas as that of \(\{u\}\), such that \(1. \;\;1=g(U,U);\)\ \(2.\;\;u(X)=g(U,X);\)\ \(3.\;\;g(X,GY)=du(X,Y);\)\ \(4.\;\;G^2=-I+u\otimes U +(u\circ J)\otimes (-JU)\); and \(5.\;\;GJ=-JG.\) Heuristically, a complex contact metric structure defines an almost quaternionic structure on \(\mathcal H\) in the analogous way a real contact metric structure defines an almost complex structure on the contact distribution on a real contact manifold. Among these structures, one of the most well-behaved subcategories is that of normal complex contact manifolds. Originally defined in [\textit{S. Ishihara} and \textit{M. Konishi}, Kodai Math. J. 3, 385--396 (1980; Zbl 0455.53032)] and altered to a much broader definition in [\textit{B. Korkmaz}, Rocky Mountain J. Math. 5, 1343--1380 (2000; Zbl 0990.53080)] , these are complex contact metric structures which fiber locally along the vertical leaves (the integral curves of \(U\) and \(JU\)) over manifolds with a local quaternionic-Kähler structure. The past twenty-five years have seen a relatively substantial amount of progress in understanding these structures. This paper makes a significant contribution to uncovering the intricacies involved with such metric structures. In particular, it explores the consequences of imposing various symmetry restrictions on normal complex contact metric structures. First, they prove that, if \(M\) is a locally symmetric normal complex contact manifold, that is, \(\nabla R=0,\) it is locally isometric to \({\mathbb C}P^{2n+1}\) with the standard Fubini-Study metric of constant holomorphic curvature 4. This is accomplished by studying how a locally symmetric metric behaves among the many curvature and metric identities on normal complex contact manifolds that are known at this point. The proof is quite technical but rather clever. This particular line of inquiry in the real contact category was begun in [\textit{M. Okumura}, Tohoku Math. J. 14, 135--145 (1962; Zbl 0119.37701)] and effectively concluded in [\textit{E. Boeckx} and \textit{J. T. Cho}, Monatsh. Math. 148, 269--281 (2006; Zbl 1103.53047)]. It would seem here that the situation for symmetry on normal complex contact manifolds is similar to that of the real case, that is, a little symmetry on the curvature goes a long way in determining the manifold and its metric. Second, the authors look at the transformations created by the vertical foliation. These are local reflections through the vertical fibres using the geodesics of \(g\) orthogonal to the vertical foliation as the ''light rays'' of the mirror (The analogous situation on \({\mathbb R}^n\) would be to define the reflection through \({\mathbb R}^k\times \{0\}\subset {\mathbb R}^n\) by \((x_1, \dots, x_k, x_{k+1}, \dots, x_n)\mapsto (x_1, \dots, x_k, -x_{k+1}, \dots, -x_n)\)). The question at hand is, under what necessary conditions are these reflections local isometries on a normal complex contact manifold? A series of theorems answering this question with more and more specific conditions are proven. In general, as long as the vertical foliation is regular, if the local vertical reflections are isometries, then \(M\) fibres over a locally symmetric space. If it is also shown that \(g\) is Kähler, then \(M\) fibres over a quaternionic symmetric space. Finally, if the complex contact structure is defined by a global holomorphic 1-form, then \(M\) fibres over a locally symmetric complex symplectic space. Altogether, these results are not too surprising. In fact, they were anticipated to a great degree by some of the original work on normal complex contact structures [\textit{S. Ishihara} and \textit{M. Konishi}, Kodai Math. J. 5, 30--37 (1982; Zbl 0499.53035)], which derived the metric structure of twistor spaces over quaternionic-Kähler manifolds, still the primary and most prominant example of normal complex contact manifolds, and [\textit{B. Foreman}, Kodai Math. J. 23, No. 1, 12--26 (2000; Zbl 1028.53049)] in which it is shown that a normal complex contact structure with global 1-form fibres locally over open hyper-Kähler manifolds.