Manifolds which are Ivanov-Petrova or k-Stanilov.pdf

a r X i v : m a t h / 0 3 1 0 1 1 8 v 1 [ m a t h .D G ] 8 O c t 2 0 0 3 MANIFOLDS WHICH ARE IVANOV-PETROVA OR k-STANILOV P. GILKEY, S. NIKC?EVIC?, AND V. VIDEV Abstract. We present some examples of curvature homogeneous pseudo-Riemannian manifolds which are k-spacelike Jordan Stanilov. 1. Introduction In considering the spectral geometry of the Riemann curvature tensor, one studies when a certain natural operator associated to the curvature has constant Jordan normal form on the natural domain of definition. In this brief note, we consider two such operators – the skew-symmetric curvature operator R and a higher order generalization Θ. We begin by recalling some basic definitions. 1.1. The algebraic context. Let V := (V, g,R) be a model space where V is a finite dimensional real vector space which is equipped with a non-degenerate inner product g of signature (p, q), and where R is an algebraic curvature tensor on V , i.e. R ∈ ?4V ? satisfies the usual curvature symmetries: R(x, y, z, w) = R(z, w, x, y) = ?R(y, x, z, w),(1.a) R(x, y, z, w) +R(y, z, x, w) +R(z, x, y, w) = 0 .(1.b) Let R(x, y) be the associated curvature operator; it is characterized by the identity: R(x, y, z, w) = g(R(x, y)z, w) . Let G?rk,±(V, g) (resp. Grk,±(V, g)) be the Grassmannians of oriented (resp. un- oriented) spacelike (+) and timelike (?) k-planes in V . Let {e1, e2} be an oriented orthonormal basis for π ∈ G?rk,±(V, g). The skew-symmetric curvature operator R(π) := R(e1, e2) was introduced by Stanilov in 1990 – see the discussion in Ivanova and Stanilov [11]; it is independent of the particular oriented orthonormal basis chosen for π. One says V has constant spacelike (resp. timelike) rank r if Rank{R(π)} = r for any oriented spacelike (resp. timelike) 2 plane π of V . One says V is spacelike (resp. timelike) Jordan Ivanov-Petrova if the Jordan normal form of R is constant on G?r2,±(V, g). Clearly if V is spacelike (resp. timelike) Jordan Ivanov-Petrova, then V has constant spa