Infinitesimal geometry of quasiconformal and bi-Lipschitz mappings in the plane (Q1951214)

Quasiconformal mappings are very important objects in modern mathematics, finding applications in the study of Riemann surfaces, Teichmüller theory, complex dynamics, value distribution theory and more. The book under review describes recent advances made in the theory of quasiconformal mappings, in particular focussing on their local behaviour in the plane. The four authors have all made major contributions to this field, and the book is a welcome addition to the literature on the subject. The book is comprised of three parts. The first part largely introduces quasiconformal mappings and their properties in a way familiar to many other similar texts, going back to [\textit{L. V. Ahlfors}, Lectures on quasiconformal mappings. University Lecture Series 38. Providence, RI: American Mathematical Society (AMS) (2006; Zbl 1103.30001)]. Where this book differs from other texts on quasiconformal mappings is in using problems from mathematical physics and analysis as motivation, for example, putting isothermal coordinates on surfaces is a problem solved by Gauss. The second part of the book is the main section, where local results on quasiconformal mappings are presented in a textbook for the first time. The main difficulty in dealing with the local behaviour of quasiconformal mappings is that they need not be differentiable everywhere, and so a suitable counterpart to derivatives is needed. This is obtained by considering the infinitesimal space of a quasiconformal (or indeed quasiregular) mapping at a point. In the case where the mapping is differentiable, this reduces to just the derivative mapping, but in general may contain more than one mapping. Many results on the implications of behaviour of mappings in the infinitesimal space are presented. The short third section describes some applications of these results to settings including unwinding of particular bi-Lipschitz mappings, variations of quasiconformal mappings and criteria for univalence of functions. This textbook is suitable for both readers new to quasiconformal mappings and those familiar with quasiconformal mappings and are interested in some of the recent developments in the local theory in the plane made by the authors and others. There are plenty of illustrative examples to aid the reader in comprehending the key points.