The Polish topology of the isometry group of the infinite dimensional hyperbolic space

Abstract: We consider the isometry group of the infinite dimensional separable hyperbolic space with its Polish topology. This topology is given by the pointwise convergence. For non-locally compact Polish groups, some striking phenomena like automatic continuity or extreme amenability may happen. Our leading idea is to compare this topological group with usual Lie groups on one side and with non-Archimedean infinite dimensional groups like

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, the group of all permutations of a countable set on the other side. Our main results are Automatic continuity (any homomorphism to a separable group is continuous), minimality of the Polish topology, identification of its universal Furstenberg boundary as the closed unit ball of a separable Hilbert space with its weak topology, identification of its universal minimal flow as the completion of some suspension of the action of the additive group of the reals on its universal minimal flow. All along the text, we lead a parallel study with the sibling group of isometries of a separable Hilbert space.

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Let \(\mathcal{H}\) be a separable Hilbert space with a Hilbert base \(\mathcal{B}=(e_i)_{i\in\mathbb{N}}\). Let \(\mathcal{Q}\) be the quadratic form with signature \((1,\infty)\) defined by \(\mathcal{Q}(x)=x_0^2-\sum\limits_{i\geq 1}x_i^2\), where \((x_i)\) are the coordinates of \(x\) in \(\mathcal{B}\). The infinite-dimensional (separable) \textit{hyperbolic space} is \(\mathbf{H}=\{x\in\mathcal{H}\,:\,\mathcal{Q}(x)=1,\ x_0>0\}\). The \textit{group of isometries} of \(\mathbf{H}\) is Isom\((\mathbf{H})=\mathrm{O}(1,\infty)/\{\pm\)Id\(\}\), where \(\mathrm{O}(1,\infty)\) is the orthogonal group of \(\mathcal{Q}\). This infinite-dimensional group has a natural group topology which makes the action Isom\((\mathbf{H})\times\mathbf{H}\to\mathbf{H}\) continuous. This is the pointwise convergence topology, that is, the coarsest group topology on Isom\((\mathbf{H})\) such that the orbits maps \(g\mapsto gx\) are continuous. Actually, this topology is the quotient topology of the strong operator topology on \(\mathrm{O}(1,\infty)\). Since \(\mathbf{H}\) is separable, this topology is known to be Polish. The aim of this paper is to study the Polish group Isom\((\mathbf{H})\) and a parallel study with the Polish group Isom\((\mathcal{H})\). These two groups are homeomorphic but the homeomorphism is not a group homomorphism. The leading idea is to compare Isom\((\mathbf{H})\) with usual Lie groups on one side and with non-Archimedean infinite-dimensional groups like the group of all permutations of a countable set on the other side. Actually, \(\mathrm{O}(1,\infty)\) is a Lie group but for the stronger topology given by the operator norm. Some main results are the following: \(\bullet\) \textit{The groups} Isom\((\mathbf{H})\) \textit{and} Isom\((\mathcal{H})\) \textit{have automatic continuity}. (A topological group \(G\) has \textit{automatic continuity} if any homomorphism \(G\to H\), where \(H\) is a separable Hausdorff topological group, is continuous.) \(\bullet\) \textit{The Polish groups} Isom\((\mathbf{H})\) \textit{and} Isom\((\mathcal{H})\) \textit{are minimal}. (A Hausdorff topological \((G,\tau)\) is said to be \textit{minimal} if there is no Hausdorff group topology on \(G\) coarser than \(\tau\).) As a consequence, \textit{the Polish group topology on} Isom\((\mathbf{H})\) \textit{is the unique separable Hausdorff group topology on} Isom\((\mathbf{H})\). Analogously for Isom\((\mathcal{H})\). \(\bullet\) \textit{The Polish group} Isom\((\mathcal{H})\) \textit{has a dense conjugacy class}, \textit{but} Isom\((\mathbf{H})\) \textit{has no dense conjugacy classes.}

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