Asymptotics of spectral gaps on loop spaces over a class of Riemannian manifolds (Q892664)

The question of the existence of a spectral gap for the Ornstein-Uhlenbeck operator on the loop space over a Riemannian manifold \(M\) is altogether important in stochastic analysis, and very delicate. \textit{A. Eberle} [J. Math. Pures Appl. (9) 81, No.~10, 915--955 (2002; Zbl 1029.58026)] provided a nice compact counterexample \(M\). No other generic answer is known regarding classes of compact Riemannian manifolds, and not even an example in the reverse direction. The author addresses that question in the case in which the manifold \(M\) is rotationally symmetric about a pole \(y_0\). The particular subcase of hyperbolic spaces was already positively handled by \textit{X. Chen} et al. [J. Funct. Anal. 259, No.~6, 1421--1442 (2010; Zbl 1228.58017)]. The author gives an alternative proof of the latter, which remains valid in the more generic case he considers (under some assumption on the given rotationally invariant metric). Moreover, he then addresses the supplementary question of the asymptotic behaviour of the spectral gap \(g(\lambda)\) he just obtained, when the parameter \(\lambda\) goes to infinity, after having weighted the pinned Wiener measure by prescribing that the duration of paths running from some (arbitrary) fixed \(x_0\) to the pole \(y_0\) be equal to \(1/\lambda\). Namely, he establishes that \(g(\lambda)/\lambda\) goes to the bottom of the spectrum of the Hessian of the \(H^1\)-energy at the geodesic \(g(x_0,y_0)\) from \(x_0\) to \(y_0\). Following the strategy that \textit{S.-Z. Fang} [C. R. Acad. Sci., Paris, Sér. I 318, No.~3, 257--260 (1994; Zbl 0805.60056)] used in the simpler case of the path space over \(M\), the author's fine method relies first on the Clark-Ocone-Haussmann formula and on the logarithmic Sobolev inequality. A~major difficulty in the loop space setting comes from the singular drift of the Brownian bridge, which is not easy to handle. To overcome this difficulty, the author proceeds by a careful analysis of Jacobi fields about the geodesic \(g(x_0,y_0)\), and the use of rough paths (to get continuity at the limit) and quasi-sure analysis (to overcome the singularity of the pinned Wiener measure with respect to the Wiener measure).