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The factor $1/2$ counts unordered pairs once. For a symmetric interaction potential, this energy is unchanged by translating the entire probability measure. It therefore cannot have positive uniform displacement convexity on the unrestricted space containing translations. If $D^{2}W\ge \lambda I$, integrate the pointwise strong convexity inequality along an optimal transport plan and its independent copy. The variance identity for independent copies then gives $\lambda$-displacement convexity on every class with fixed barycenter of a measure, whenever the integrals are finite.

Use an independent copy $(x^{\prime },y^{\prime })$ of $(x,y)$ under the product measure $\Pi \otimes \Pi$. Write $q=y-x$, $q^{\prime }=y^{\prime }-x^{\prime }$, andSince the pushforward measure of $\Pi \otimes \Pi$ under $(z_t,z_t^{\prime })$ is ${\mu }_t\otimes {\mu }_t$, the interaction energy isTwo applications of the chain rule giveThe factor $1/2$ is retained. This classical identity requires differentiation under the integral sign to be justified, just as in part (b). Bounded Hessian matrix of $W$ is sufficient, since $|q-q^{\prime }{|}^2\le 2|q{|}^2+2|q^{\prime }{|}^2$ is integrable; compactly supported endpoints are another sufficient case. The printed quadratic-growth condition alone does not provide this domination.

The failure can occur for the interaction energy too. Take the even interaction potential $W(x)=1-\cos (2\pi x^3)$ and replace the endpoint probability measures in part (b) by $\frac{1}{2}{\delta }_0+\frac{1}{2}\mu$ and $\frac{1}{2}{\delta }_0+\frac{1}{2}\nu$. Keep the origin fixed and translate every other atom by one. This coupling is increasing on the line, hence is optimal: its assigned values extend to a nondecreasing transport map, which is the gradient of a convex function. Differences between translated atoms remain integers, so their mutual interaction vanishes. Only interactions with the origin contribute, giving $\mathcal{W}[{\mu }_t]=F(t)/4$, with $F$ from part (b). It therefore also lacks a finite classical second derivative at $t=1/2$.

Define the barycenter of a measure by $m_{\mu }=\int xd\mu (x)$. Under $\Pi$, the mean displacement is $\bar{q}=m_{\nu }-m_{\mu }$, and optimality gives $\int |q{|}^{2}d\Pi =D^2$. Expanding the square under the product measure yields the variance identity for independent copies:In the classical regime of part (c), the lower bound on the Hessian matrix of the interaction potential therefore givesFor equal barycenters, this becomes

For the full stated class of probability measures, prove the displacement convexity inequality directly. Pointwise strong convexity of $W$ givesIntegrating, including the $1/2$ in the interaction energy, and using the displayed variance identity for independent copies givesAll terms are finite by quadratic growth and finite second absolute moments. Equal barycenters give the claimed $\lambda$-displacement convexity. Also $m_{{\mu }_t}=(1-t)m_{\mu }+t{m}_{\nu }$, so this metric geodesic remains in the prescribed fixed-mean class. Applying the same argument to subintervals proves the second derivative bound in the sense of distributions even when a classical derivative has not been justified. The mean restriction is natural: translating all particles together leaves their pairwise differences and hence the interaction energy unchanged.

For a twice continuously differentiable interaction potential with $\Vert D^{2}W\Vert \le L$ and a probability measure with finite first absolute moment, this subtraction produces a finite potential even if $W\ast \mu$ is infinite. Taylor's formula and linear growth of the gradient giveDominated differentiation under the integral sign gives $\nabla V_{\mathrm{ren}}=(\nabla W)\ast \mu$ and $D^2{V}_{\mathrm{ren}}=(D^{2}W)\ast \mu$. If the unrenormalized convolution is finite, the two potentials differ only by a constant, so they generate the same velocity field when that field depends on their gradient.