Structure theorem for Riemannian surfaces with arbitrary curvature (Q431249)

The main result of this paper provides a decomposition of complete orientable Riemannian surfaces with no restriction of curvature. It is shown that every complete orientable Riemannian surface with non abelian fundamental group is the union of generalized Y-pieces, generalized funnels and halfplanes. It is a generalization of an analogous result for surfaces with constant negative curvature. It is also proved that a complete orientable Riemannian surface with curvature \(K\leq -c^2<0\) which is neither simply nor doubly connected is the union of generalized Y-pieces, funnels and halfplanes. If the surface does not have a Green function, then it is the union of generalized Y-pieces. Furthermore, the authors treat complete orientable geodesically bordered Riemannian surfaces without restriction of curvature or with curvature \(K\leq -c^2<0\).