The isoperimetric profile of a smooth Riemannian manifold for small volumes (Q836951)

Let \(M\) be a complete smooth \(n\)-dimensional Riemannian manifold. When one examines the existence and uniqueness of small constant mean curvature hyperspheres, one applies the implicit function theorem which associates to a small hypersurface its mean curvature. The linearization of this map is not invertible. Modifying this map yields a new class of hypersurfaces, called pseudo-bubbles, which satisfy a weaker condition than the constancy of the mean curvature. The author shows that locally there is a unique family of concentric pseudo-bubbles containing all the pseudo-bubbles which are \(C^{2,\alpha}\) close to small spheres. Pseudo-bubbles in constant sectional curvature are geodesic spheres. This analysis permits the authors to reduce the isoperimetric problem for small volumes to a variational problem in finite dimensions. Pseudo-bubbles are constructed via the implicit function theorem in an infinite dimensional context. The first two non-zero coefficients of the asymptotic expansion of the isoperimetric profile are obtained.