On gradient dynamical system on semi-Riemannian manifolds (Q923452)

The motivation for this paper was a problem of \textit{S. Smale} [J. Differ. Geom. 7, 193-210 (1972; Zbl 0286.34071)] to describe dynamical systems which are gradient systems of a function with respect to a non-degenerate indefinite matrix on a compact manifold. Investigating the problem in a broader context, the author studies gradient dynamical systems on semi- Riemannian manifolds of arbitrary index. The main part of the paper is devoted to development of three new concepts, important for description of dynamics: the causality function, the causality subset and the sector stability. As an application, the author (1) derives conditions assuring that the nonwandering points are precisely the singular points of the gradient field, (2) proves that every nonconstant recurrent orbit for the gradient field must intersect one of the causality subsets and (3) that the stable and unstable manifolds, belonging to a hyperbolic singular point for the gradient field, are orthogonal.