Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge / 2003 / iii / Paper 14 / 5 / Solution

Fix $p$ in a Riemannian manifold $(M,g)$. The preliminary results used are the existence of the Levi-Civita connection, which is metric-compatible and torsion-free; local existence, uniqueness and smooth dependence for the geodesic ordinary differential equation; and the inverse function theorem. The local geodesic equation isso these ordinary differential equation results apply to the initial data $(p,v)$. On an open neighborhood of $0\in T_{p}M$, the solution ${\gamma }_v$ with ${\gamma }_v(0)=p$, ${\dot{\gamma }}_v(0)=v$ is defined up to time one, and the exponential map is ${\exp }_p(v)={\gamma }_v(1)$.

The geodesic equation is invariant under affine rescaling of the parameter. Uniqueness therefore gives ${\gamma }_v(t)={\exp }_p(tv)$ whenever these expressions are defined. In particularThe inverse function theorem now makes ${\exp }_p$ a diffeomorphism from a sufficiently small ball about zero in $T_{p}M$ onto a neighborhood of $p$. Choose a $g_p$-orthonormal basis $(e_i)$ and define coordinates byThese are geodesic coordinates, also called normal coordinates. They exist near every point. Radial coordinate rays $x^i(t)=t{v}^i$ are affinely parametrized geodesics issuing from $p$, and $g_{ij}(p)={\delta }_{ij}$. Substitution of all such rays into the geodesic equation at $t=0$ gives ${\Gamma }^i{}_{jk}(p)v^j{v}^k=0$ for all $v$. Since the connection is torsion-free, these coefficients are symmetric in $j,k$; polarization gives ${\Gamma }^i{}_{jk}(p)=0$. Metric compatibility then gives ${\partial }_k{g}_{ij}(p)=0$. These statements concern the center $p$; they do not make every translated coordinate line a geodesic.

The precise Gauss lemma isfor $v$ in such a sufficiently small neighborhood and every $w\in T_{p}M$. Thus the exponential map preserves the radial pairing; in particular it takes the radial direction orthogonally to the tangent directions of spheres about zero.

To prove it, form the smooth geodesic variationAll the curves with $s$ fixed are geodesics, so $D_{t}T=0$. The torsion-free Levi-Civita connection gives $D_{t}S=D_{s}T$ for this two-parameter map. This equality follows also by writing both derivatives in coordinates: the mixed partial derivatives agree and the Christoffel coefficients are symmetric. Metric compatibility yieldsThe constant-speed property permitted in the question gives $g(T,T)=g_p(v+sw,v+sw)$ for every $t$. Thus at $s=0$ the last expression is $g_p(v,w)$. Since $F(0,s)=p$, we have $S(0,s)=0$, and integrating in $t$ gives $g(T,S)(t,0)=t{g}_p(v,w)$. At $t=1$, the two variation derivatives are $T(1,0)=(d{\exp }_p{)}_{v}v$ and $S(1,0)=(d{\exp }_p{)}_{v}w$, proving the lemma. Its radial-length assertion follows by taking $w=v$, and its orthogonality assertion by taking $w\perp v$. Only constant speed is used here; the PDF correctly states constancy of the length of the velocity vector, whose dot is lost in the TeX aid.