On expanding foliations (Q889892)

Let \(M\) be a closed connected manifold with universal covering \(\widetilde M\), let \(f:M\to M\) be a diffeomorphism with lift \(\tilde f:\widetilde M\to\widetilde M\), and let \(W\) be a foliation on \(M\) with lift \(\widetilde W\) to \(\widetilde M\). Suppose that \(W\) is invariant by \(f\). The following concepts are independent of the choice of a Riemannian metric on \(M\). It is said that \(W\) is expanding if there is some \(\lambda>1\) such that \(\|Tfv\|\geq\lambda\|v\|\) for all \(v\in TW\), and \(W\) is called quasi-isometric if there is some \(Q>1\) such that \(d_{\widetilde W}(x,y)<Qd_{\widetilde M}(x,y)+Q\) for all \(x\) and \(y\) in the same leaf of \(\widetilde W\). The motivation of quasi-isometric foliations is that partially hyperbolic diffeomorphisms become easier to analyze when their stable and unstable foliations satisfy this property. The main theorem states that there are no expanding quasi-isometric foliations in the following cases: (1)~Riemannian \(d\)-manifolds of constant negative curvature with \(d\geq3\), (2)~their unit tangent bundles, and (3)~suspensions of hyperbolic toral automorphisms. In fact, only the fundamental group is used in the proof, which has the following steps. By the expanding and quasi-isometric conditions, the sequence \(d_{\widetilde M}(\tilde f^n(x),\tilde f^n(y))\) grows exponentially for all \(x\neq y\) in \(\widetilde M\). By the compactness of \(M\), if \(g:M\to M\) is another map with \(g_*=f_*\) on \(\pi_1(M)\), then there is some \(C>0\) such that \(d_{\widetilde M}(\tilde f(x),\tilde g(x))<C\) for all \(x\in\widetilde M\). In the case~(1), by Mostow rigidity, there is an isometry \(g\) of \(M\) with \(f_*=g_*\) on \(\pi_1(M)\), yielding \(d_{\widetilde M}(\tilde f^n(x),\tilde f^n(y))<d_{\widetilde M}(x,y)+Cn\), a contradiction. The case~(2) also follows because \(\pi_1(T_1M)\cong\pi_1(M)\). For the case~(3), the concept of unstretchable finitely generated group is introduced. Then it is proved that \(d_{\widetilde M}(\tilde f^n(x),\tilde f^n(y))\) grows at most polynomially if \(\pi_1(M)\) is unstretchable, and also that \(\pi_1(M)\) is unstretchable in the case (3), obtaining the same kind of contradiction. Indeed, \(\pi_1(M)\) is also unstretchable in the case~(1) by Mostow rigidity, giving a unified proof of all cases with this concept.