Abstract
We prove that, in the first Heisenberg group \(\mathbb {H}\), an entire locally Lipschitz intrinsic graph admitting vanishing first variation of its sub-Riemannian area and non-negative second variation must be an intrinsic plane, i.e., a coset of a two dimensional subgroup of \(\mathbb {H}\). Moreover two examples are given for stressing result’s sharpness.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Alberti, G., Bianchini, S., Caravenna, L.: Eulerian, Lagrangian and Broad continuous solutions to a balance law with non-convex flux I. J. Differ. Equ. 261(8), 4298–4337 (2016)
Ambrosio, L.: Some fine properties of sets of finite perimeter in Ahlfors regular metric measure spaces. Adv. Math. 159(1), 51–67 (2001)
Ambrosio, L., Ghezzi, R.: Sobolev and bounded variation functions on metric measure spaces. In: Geometry, Analysis and Dynamics on sub-Riemannian manifolds. Vol. II. EMS Series Lecture Mathematics Europe Mathematics Society, Zurich, pp. 211–273 (2016)
Ambrosio, L., Serra Cassano, F., Vittone, D.: Intrinsic regular hy-persurfaces in Heisenberg groups. J. Geom. Anal. 16(2), 187–232 (2006)
Ambrosio, L., Tilli, P.: Topics on Analysis in Metric Spaces. Oxford Lecture Series in Mathematics and its Applications, vol. 25, pp. 8–133. Oxford University Press, Oxford (2004)
Adesi, V.B., Serra Cassano, F., Vittone, D.: The Bernstein problem for intrinsic graphs in Heisenberg groups and calibrations. Cal. Var. Part. Differ. Equ. 30(1), 17–49 (2007)
Bigolin, F., Caravenna, L., Serra Cassano, F.: Intrinsic Lipschitz graphs in Heisenberg groups and continuous solutions of a balance equation. Ann. Inst. H. Poincare Anal. Non Lineaire 32(5), 925–963 (2015)
Capogna, L., Citti, G., Manfredini, M.: Regularity of non-characteristic minimal graphs in the Heisenberg group H1. Indiana Univ. Math. J. 58(5), 2115–2160 (2009)
Capogna, L., Citti, G., Manfredini, M.: Smoothness of Lipschitz minimal intrinsic graphs in Heisenberg groups Hn, n \(>\) 1. J. Reine Angew. Math. 648, 75–110 (2010)
Capogna, L., Danielli, D., Garofalo, N.: The geometric Sobolev embedding for vector fields and the isoperimetric inequality. Comm. Anal. Geom. 2(2), 203–215 (1994)
Capogna, L., Danielli, D., Pauls, S.D., Tyson, J.T.: An Introduction to the Heisenberg Group and the Sub-Riemannian Isoperimetric Problem. Progress in Mathematics, vol. 259, pp. 14–223. Birkhauser, Basel (2007)
Cheng, J.-H., Hwang, J.-F., Yang, P.: Existence and uniqueness for p-area minimizers in the Heisenberg group. Math. Ann. 337(2), 253–293 (2007)
Cheng, J.-H., Hwang, J.-F., Yang, P.: Regularity of C1 smooth surfaces with prescribed p-mean curvature in the Heisenberg group. Math. Ann. 344(1), 1–35 (2009)
Cheng, J.-H., Hwang, J.-F., Malchiodi, A., Yang, P.: Minimal surfaces in pseudohermitian geometry. Ann. Sci. Norm. Super. Pisa Cl. Sci. 4(1), 129–177 (2005)
Danielli, D., Garofalo, N., Nhieu, D.M., Pauls, S.D.: Instability of graphical strips and a positive answer to the Bernstein problem in the Heisenberg group H1. J. Differ. Geom. 81(2), 251295 (2009)
Danielli, D., Garofalo, N., Nhieu, D.-M., Pauls, S.D.: The Bernstein problem for embedded surfaces in the Heisenberg group H1. Indiana Univ. Math. J. 59(2), 563–594 (2010)
Evans, L.C., Gariepy, R.F.: Measure Theory and Fine Properties of Functions. Textbooks in Mathematics, p. 14. CRC Press, Boca Raton (2015)
Fogagnolo, M., Monti, R., Vittone, D.: Variation formulas for H-rectifiable sets. Ann. Acad. Sci. Fenn. Math. 42.1, 239256 (2017)
Franchi, B., Serapioni, R., Serra Cassano, F.: Rectifiability and perimeter in the Heisenberg group. Math. Ann. 321.3, 479531 (2001)
Galli, M.: The regularity of Euclidean Lipschitz boundaries with prescribed mean curvature in three-dimensional contact sub-Riemannian manifolds. Nonlinear Anal. 136, 40–50 (2016)
Galli, M., Ritoré, M.: Area-stationary and stable surfaces of class C1 in the sub-Riemannian Heisenberg group H1. Adv. Math. 285, 737–765 (2015)
Galli, M., Ritoré, M.: Regularity of C1 surfaces with prescribed mean curvature in three-dimensional contact sub-Riemannian manifolds. Calc. Var. Part. Differ. Equ. 54.3, 25032516 (2015)
Gariepy, R., Ziemer, W.: Modern Real Analysis. Springer, Berlin (1995)
Garofalo, N., Pauls, S. D.: The Bernstein Problem in the Heisenberg Group. In: ArXiv Mathematics e-prints (2002). eprint: math/ 0209065
Garofalo, N., Nhieu, D.-M.: Isoperimetric and Sobolev inequalities for Carnot–Caratheodory spaces and the existence of minimal surfaces. Comm. Pure Appl. Math. 49(10), 1081–1144 (1996)
Golo, S.: Some remarks on contact variations in the first Heisenberg group. Ann. Acad. Sci. Fenn. Math. 43(1), 311–335 (2018)
Hartman, P.: Ordinary Differential Equations. Classics in Applied Mathematics, vol. 38, p. 20. Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics (SIAM), Philadelphia (2002)
Hencl, S., Koskela, P.: Lectures on Mappings of Finite Distortion. Lecture Notes in Mathematics, vol. 2096. Springer, Cham (2014)
Hurtado, A., Ritoré, M., Rosales, C.: The classification of complete stable area-stationary surfaces in the Heisenberg group H1. Adv. Math. 224(2), 561–600 (2010)
Kirchheim, B., Serra Cassano, F.: Rectifiability and parameterization of intrinsic regular surfaces in the Heisenberg group. Ann. Sc. Norm. Super. Pisa Cl. Sci. 3(4), 871–896 (2004)
Monti, R.: Isoperimetric problem and minimal surfaces in the Heisenberg group. In: Geometric Measure Theory and Real Analysis. CRM Series, vol. 17, pp. 57–129. Edizioni della Normale, Pisa (2014)
Monti, R.: Minimal surfaces and harmonic functions in the Heisenberg group. Nonlinear Anal. 126, 378–393 (2015)
Monti, R., Serra Cassano, F., Vittone, D.: A negative answer to the Bernstein problem for intrinsic graphs in the Heisenberg group Boll. Unione Mat. Ital. 1(3), 709–727 (2008)
Monti, R., Stefani, G.: Improved Lipschitz approximation of H-perimeter minimizing boundaries. J. Math. Pures Appl. 108.3, 372–398 (2017)
Monti, R., Vittone, D.: Height estimate and slicing formulas in the Heisenberg group. Anal. PDE 8(6), 1421–1454 (2015)
Pansu, P.: Geometrie du groupe de Heisenberg. PhD thesis. Universite Paris 7 (1982)
Pansu, P.: Metriques de Carnot-Caratheodory et quasiisometries des espaces symetriques de rang un. Ann. of Math. 129.1, 1–60 (1989)
Pansu, P.: Une inegalite isoperimetrique sur le groupe de Heisenberg. C. R. Acad. Sci. Paris Ser. I Math. 295.2, 127–130 (1982)
Pauls, S.D.: H-minimal graphs of low regularity in H1. Comment. Math. Helv. 81(2), 337–381 (2006)
Pauls, S.D.: Minimal surfaces in the Heisenberg group. Geom. Dedicata 104, 201–231 (2004)
Ritoré, M., Rosales, C.: Area-stationary and stable surfaces in the sub-Riemannian Heisenberg group H1. Mat. Contemp. 35, 185–203 (2008)
Ritoré, M.: Examples of area-minimizing surfaces in the sub-Rieman-nian Heisenberg group H1 with low regularity. Calc. Var. Part. Differ. Equ. 34(2), 179–192 (2009)
Serra Cassano, F.: Some topics of geometric measure theory in Carnot groups. In: Geometry, Analysis and Dynamics on Sub-Riemannian Manifolds. EMS Series of Lectures in Mathematics European Mathematical Society, Zurich (2016)
Serra Cassano, F., Vittone, D.: Graphs of bounded variation, existence and local boundedness of non-parametric minimal surfaces in Heisenberg groups. Adv. Calc. Var. 7(4), 409–492 (2014)
Ziemer, W.P.: Modern real analysis Graduate Texts in Mathematics. Graduate Texts in Mathematics. With contributions by Monica Torres, vol. 278, 2nd edn, p. 9. Springer, Cham (2017)
Acknowledgements
This paper benefited from fruitful discussions with M. Ritoré: The authors want to thank him. The authors want to thank also the anonymous referee for the careful reading and suggestions.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Additional information
Communicated by L. Ambrosio.
Publisher's Note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Both authors have been supported by the European Unions Seventh Framework Programme, Marie Curie Actions-Initial Training Network, under grant Agreement No. 607643, “Metric Analysis For Emergent Technologies (MAnET)”.
S. N. has been supported by EPSRC Grant “Sub-Elliptic Harmonic Analysis” (EP/P002447/1), and by University of Padova STARS Project “Sub-Riemannian Geometry and Geometric Measure Theory Issues: Old and New”.
F. S. C. has been supported by MIUR, Italy, GNAMPA of INDAM and University of Trento.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Nicolussi, S., Serra Cassano, F. The Bernstein problem for Lipschitz intrinsic graphs in the Heisenberg group. Calc. Var. 58, 141 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00526-019-1581-5
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00526-019-1581-5