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The slope of a nonzero holomorphic vector bundle on a compact Riemann surface is its degree of a holomorphic vector bundle divided by its rank of a vector bundle. It measures degree per fibre dimension. Comparing subbundle slopes defines semistable holomorphic vector bundles.

Fix a Hermitian metric on a holomorphic vector bundle $E$ over a compact Riemann surface and a positive area form $\omega$. Write $i{F}_E=K\omega$ for its Chern curvature. If every eigenvalue of the Hermitian endomorphism $K$ is at most $C$, the curvature formula for a holomorphic subbundle gives $\mathrm{deg}F\le \mathrm{rank}(F)C{\int }_X\omega /(2\pi )$. The second-fundamental-form term is nonpositive. Compactness supplies a finite $C$ independent of the subbundle. If $F_E=0$, every subbundle has nonpositive degree.

A unitary representation of the fundamental group of a connected complex manifold gives a bundle $(\tilde{X}\times V)/{\pi }_{1}X$ with locally constant unitary transition matrices. Its induced flat unitary connection has $(0,1)$ part equal to its Dolbeault operator, so it is the Chern connection for the induced Hermitian metric. On a compact Riemann surface, zero curvature gives degree zero; the subbundle curvature inequality makes the bundle semistable.