On the isotropy subalgebras of Lie algebras of conformal vector fields教程.pdfVIP

Journal of Geometry and Physics 62 (2012) 646–656 Contents lists available at SciVerse ScienceDirect Journal of Geometry and Physics journal homepage: /locate/jgp On the isotropy subalgebras of Lie algebras of conformal vector fields M. Lampe Mathematisches Institut, Universität Leipzig, PF 100920, 04009 Leipzig, Germany a r t i c l e i n f o a b s t r a c t Article history: The conformal isotropy algebra of a point m in an n-manifold with a metric of arbitrary Available online 29 April 2011 signature is shown to be locally reducible, by a conformal change of the metric, to a homothetic algebra near m iff, by choice of a chart, its constituent vector fields are Keywords: simultaneously linearisable at m and, for n ≥ 3, a necessary and sufficient condition for this Isotropy subalgebras Conformal vector fields in terms of the first and second derivatives of these fields at m is given. The implications Riemannian metrics for the Riemannian case and the Lorentzian case are investigated. In contrast to the former, Lorentzian metrics a Lorentzian manifold admitting a conformal vector field that is not linearisable at some point need not be conformally flat. Relevant four-dimensional examples are provided. © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. 1. Introduction The study of conformal symmetries has met recent interest motivated by the problem of c