Biharmonic hypersurfaces of the 4-dimensional semi-Euclidean space \(\mathbb E_s^4\) (Q819050)

Let \(M\) be a non-degenerate hypersurface of a 4-dimensional semi-Euclidean space \(E\). Suppose that \(M\) is a biharmonic submanifold and its shape operator is diagonalizable. The authors prove that \(M\) must be a minimal submanifold of \(E\). The result is related to the following conjecture of B. Y. Chen: The only biharmonic submanifolds of Euclidean spaces are the minimal ones. Thus, the authors give a partial answer for the extension of Chen's conjecture to 4-dimensional semi-Euclidean spaces.