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Flag structures on real 3-manifolds

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Abstract

We define flag structures on a real three manifold M as the choice of two complex lines on the complexified tangent space at each point of M. We suppose that the plane field defined by the complex lines is a contact plane and construct an adapted connection on an appropriate principal bundle. This includes path geometries and CR structures as special cases. We prove that the null curvature models are given by totally real submanifolds in the flag space \(\mathbf{SL}(3,{{\mathbb {C}}})/B\), where B is the subgroup of upper triangular matrices. We also define a global invariant which is analogous to the Chern–Simons secondary class invariant for three manifolds with a Riemannian structure and to the Burns–Epstein invariant in the case of CR structures. It turns out to be constant on homotopy classes of totally real immersions in flag space.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Sorbonne Université Faculté de Sciences and Institut de Mathématiques de Jussieu-Paris Rive Gauche, CNRS UMR 7586 and INRIA EPI-OURAGAN, Sorbonne Université, 4, Place Jussieu, 75252, Paris Cedex 05, France

    E. Falbel

  2. Faculdade de Matemática - ICEN, Universidade Federal do Pará, 66059, Belém, PA, Brazil

    J. M. Veloso

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  1. E. Falbel
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  2. J. M. Veloso
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Correspondence to E. Falbel.

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Falbel, E., Veloso, J.M. Flag structures on real 3-manifolds. Geom Dedicata 209, 149–176 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10711-020-00528-4

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