The infinitesimal deformations of hypersurfaces that preserve the Gauss map (Q6566403)

Let \(F:I\times M^n\to\mathbb R^{n+1}\) be a smooth variation of a given isometric immersion \(f:M^n\to\mathbb R^{n+1}\) of a Riemannian manifold \(M^n\), \(n\geq 2\), such that \(0\in I\subset\mathbb R\) is an interval, \(F(0,x)=f(x)\) and \(f_t=F(t,\cdot):M^n\to\mathbb R^{n+1}\) is an immersion for any \(t\in I\). Then \(F\) is called an infinitesimal variation if the metrics \(g_t\), \(t\in I\), induced by \(f_t\) satisfy \(\partial/\partial t\vert_{t=0}g_t=0\), that is, \N\[\N\left.\frac{\partial}{\partial t}\right\vert_{t=0} \langle f_{t\ast}X,f_{t\ast}Y\rangle=0,\N\]\Nfor any \(X,Y\in\mathfrak X(M)\).\N\NClassifying the nonflat hypersurfaces in Euclidean space that locally admit smooth infinitesimal deformations preserving the Gauss map infinitesimally was a problem considered by \textit{J. A. Schouten} [Proc. Akad. Wet. Amsterdam 31, 208--218 (1928; JFM 54.0771.04)]. He found two conditions that are necessary and sufficient, with the first one being the minimality of the submanifold, while the second is a technical condition that does not clarify much about the geometric nature of the hypersurface.\N\NIn this paper, the authors give a complete local parametric classification of the Euclidean hypersurfaces that admit infinitesimal isometric deformations infinitesimally preserving the Gauss map, and shows that the parametric solution of the problem yields that the submanifold has to be Kähler.