Homogeneous \((\alpha, \beta)\)-spaces with positive flag curvature and vanishing S-curvature (Q499610)

An \((\alpha,\beta)\)-metric on a manifold is a Finsler metric that can be expressed as \(F=\alpha\phi(\beta/\alpha)\) where \(\alpha\) is a Riemannian metric, \(\beta\) is a 1-form and \(\phi\) is a smooth positive function. The class of \((\alpha,\beta)\)-metrics forms a natural generalization of the class of Randers metrics, the simplest class of non-Riemannian metrics in Finsler geometry. In this paper, the authors classify all homogeneous spaces admitting an invariant non-Riemannian \((\alpha,\beta)\)-metric with positive flag curvature and vanishing \(S\)-curvature. Recall that the flag curvature is the generalization in Finsler geometry of the Riemannian sectional curvature, and the S-curvature is an important non-Riemannian curvature defined by Z. Shen in the context of Finsler geometry. The strategy of the proof is to show that, under these hypotheses there exists a natural Finslerian submersion \(\pi:(G/H,F)\to (G/K,cg)\) onto an even-dimensional Riemannian homogeneous space \(G/K\) with positive sectional curvature. The classification of all homogeneous spaces admitting an invariant \((\alpha,\beta)\)-metric with positive flag curvature and vanishing S-curvature is then deduced from the classification of even-dimensional manifolds admitting a Riemannian metric with positive sectional curvature due to Wallach, Aloff-Wallach and Bergery. A case-by-case argument determines which ones admit also a non-Riemannian \((\alpha,\beta)\)-metric with positive flag curvature and vanishing S-curvature.