The gradient flow of Higgs pairs (Q638780)

For the heat flow of the Yang-Mills-Higgs functional of Higgs pairs on a Hermitian vector bundle \((E, H_0 )\), the asymptotic behavior at infinity is studied (see also [\textit{G. D. Daskalopoulos} and \textit{R. A. Wentworth}, J. Reine Angew. Math. 575, 69--99 (2004; Zbl 1063.53026); \textit{M.-C. Hong}, Ann. Global Anal. Geom. 20, No.~1, 23--46 (2001; Zbl 0988.53009)]). The main result says that the gradient flow with initial condition \((A_0 , \varphi_0 )\) converges, in an appropriate sense which takes into account bubbling phenomena, to a critical point \((A_\infty, \varphi_\infty)\) of this functional. It is proved that the limiting Higgs pair \((A_\infty, \varphi_\infty)\) can be extended smoothly to a vector bundle \(E_\infty\) over \((M, \omega)\), and that the isomorphism class of the limiting Higgs bundle \((E_\infty, A_\infty, \varphi_\infty)\) is given by the double dual of the graded Higgs sheaves associated to the Harder-Narasimhan-Seshadri filtration of the initial Higgs bundle \((E, A_0 , \varphi_0 )\).