Convex geometry and waist inequalities (Q521607)

Let \(f:S^n\to\mathbb R^l\), \(1\leq l\leq n\), be a continuous function on the unit sphere. The spherical waist inequality ensures the existence of a large fiber of \(f\), with volume at least \(\mathrm{vol}_{n-l}(S^{n-l})\). Gromov extended the spherical waist inequality to a Gaussian waist inequality: for every continuous function \(f:\mathbb R^n\to\mathbb R^l\), there exists \(t\in\mathbb R^l\) such that \(\gamma_n(f^{-1}(t)+rB^n)\geq\gamma_l(rB^l)\) for all \(r>0\), where \(\gamma_n\) denotes the standard Gaussian measure on \(\mathbb R^n\), and \(B^n\) the unit ball in \(\mathbb R^n\). In the present paper, the author carefully reviews the method of proof of the Gaussian waist inequality in order to apply it to convex geometry. The method of the proof includes the use of a Borsuk-Ulam theorem and the convex localization method. The author obtains a waist type inequality for continuous functions \(f:K\to\mathbb R^l\), where \(K\subset\mathbb R^n\) is a convex body (compact, convex set with non-empty interior), which involves the lower Minkowski volume and the supremum of the volume of the sections of \(K\) intersected with the \(l\)-dimensional subspaces. Moreover, the author relates the \(M\)-position \(\tilde K\) of a convex body \(K\) with the existence of a waist inequality: for every continuous function \(f:\tilde K\to\mathbb R^l\), there exists \(t\in\mathbb R^l\) such that the \((n-l)\)-lower Minkowski volume of \(f^{-1}(t)\) is at least \(c^{n-l}\), where \(c>0\) is a universal constant. As the author remarks, the improvement of this result to \(c^l\) would imply the hyperplane and isoperimetric conjecture.