Ricci tensor

The Ricci tensor is the contraction $R_{\alpha \beta }=R^{\mu }{}_{\alpha \mu \beta }$ and is symmetric for the Levi-Civita connection.

For dimension $n\ge 3$, the Schouten tensor packages the Ricci tensor and scalar curvature in the trace part of the Riemann curvature tensor. In dimension three it is $S_{ij}=R_{ij}-R{g}_{ij}/4$, and the full Riemann curvature tensor is reconstructed from it.

The algebraic symmetries of the Riemann curvature tensor leave only one independent curvature component in two dimensions and forceConsequently the Einstein tensor vanishes identically.

With no cosmological term, the two-dimensional Einstein field equations reduce identically on the geometric side to $G_{\alpha \beta }=0$. They impose $T_{\alpha \beta }=0$ and supply no local metric dynamics; the Einstein-Hilbert action is topological.

The Ricci tensor and scalar satisfy ${\nabla }^{\alpha }{R}_{\alpha \beta }=\frac{1}{2}{\nabla }_{\beta }R$.

For the Levi-Civita connection, the second Bianchi identity gives ${\nabla }_i{R}^{ik}{}_{mn}={\nabla }_m{R}^k{}_n-{\nabla }_n{R}^k{}_m$. Applying another covariant derivative and the contracted Bianchi identity reduces its divergence to a commuting scalar Hessian plus curvature commutators on the Ricci tensor. The latter are the difference of symmetric tensors: a square of the Ricci tensor and $R^{ab}{R}_{anbm}$, which is symmetric in $m,n$ by curvature pair exchange and Ricci symmetry. Both differences vanish. This identity does not require vacuum field equations and is independent of the overall curvature sign convention.

The Einstein tensor isThe contracted Bianchi identity and metric compatibility give
${\nabla }^{\nu }{G}_{\mu \nu }=0$, ensuring compatibility of the Einstein equations with covariant stress-energy conservation.

For $d{s}^2=-d{t}^2+a(t{)}^{2}d{\mathbf{x}}^2$, the nonzero connection coefficients areWith $G_t^t=-3H^2$ and
$G_i^j=-(2\ddot{a}/a+H^2){\delta }_i^j$, direct substitution into the mixed-tensor covariant derivative gives zero.

The vacuum equation with positive cosmological constant gives
$H^2=\Lambda /3$. Its expanding flat-slicing solution is

In a spatially flat universe dominated by a positive constant energy density $ϵ$, the Friedmann equations give $H^2=8\pi Gϵ/(3c^2)$. On the expanding branch $a(t)=a_i{e}^{H(t-t_i)}$, so the scale factor doubles after $(\log 2)/H$. This concerns a linear length scale; the enclosed physical volume grows by a factor of eight over the same interval.

A pseudo-Riemannian manifold has constant sectional curvature $K$ when $R_{abcd}=K(g_{ac}{g}_{bd}-g_{ad}{g}_{bc})$. In dimension $n$, its Ricci tensor and scalar are $R_{ab}=(n-1)K{g}_{ab}$ and $R=n(n-1)K$.

In dimension greater than two, if sectional curvature is pointwise independent of the two-plane, the contracted Bianchi identity forces that curvature to be constant on each connected component.

The positive-definite specialization is Schur's lemma.