On the variational problem associated with standard differential systems (Q906897)

The reader should start reading at the last page, where crucial notation is defined. This paper concerns nilpotent Lie groups \(G\) with graded Lie algebra \(\mathfrak{g}=\mathfrak{g}_1 \oplus \mathfrak{g}_2\) and with a Euclidean inner product chosen on the lowest graded subspace \(\mathfrak{g}_1 \subset \mathfrak{g}\). The subspace \(\mathfrak{g}_1\) in the Lie algebra is left-translated to produce a left-invariant subbundle \(D \subset TG\) of the tangent bundle of the group \(G\), called a \textit{standard differential system}. The inner product is left translated to give a sub-Riemannian geometry on \(G\). Starting at Section 2.1 (before any theorems are stated), the author begins to assume that the grading is \(\mathfrak{g}=\mathfrak{g}_1 \oplus \mathfrak{g}_2\), having only 2 grades. He defines the energy of a path to be the integral of squared velocity. He proves that the infimum energy among \(D\)-tangent paths is the square of the distance. In Section 2.2, Theorem 2.2, he identifies the infinitesimal deformations of \(D\)-tangent paths which arise from actual deformations, at least subject to some open condition called nonsingularity; these infinitesimal deformations are precisely the solutions to some linear integral equations. Roughly, singular paths are those with unusually few tangent directions. Equivalently, singular paths satisfy more than one ``reduced geodesic equation'', which he defines in Section 2.2. He then identifies, from among the nonsingular paths, which ones are energy-critical, being the reduced geodesics. He proves the same result for singular paths in certain nilpotent Lie groups. In Section 3.1, he defines an exponential map associated to the variational problem of least energy. In Sections 3.2 and 3.3, he describes the Hamiltonian function on \(T^\ast G\) associated to the variational problem. The Hamiltonian flow lines project to reduced geodesics. In Chapter 4, he proves minimal energy of reduced geodesics under some estimate, and uniqueness of a minimal energy path under the same estimate. In Chapter 5, he defines a cut locus for his variational problem, and proves that that its boundary is the image under the exponential map of the boundary of a certain region. Finally he computes some explicit examples of cut loci.