No Arabic abstract
We complement our work on the causality of upper semi-continuous distributions of cones with some results on Cauchy hypersurfaces. We prove that every locally stably acausal Cauchy hypersurface is stable. Then we prove that the signed distance $d_S$ from a spacelike hypersurface $S$ is, in a neighborhood of it, as regular as the hypersurface, and by using this fact we give a proof that every Cauchy hypersurface is the level set of a Cauchy temporal (and steep) function of the same regularity as the hypersurface. We also show that in a globally hyperbolic closed cone structure compact spacelike hypersurfaces with boundary can be extended to Cauchy spacelike hypersurfaces of the same regularity. We end the work with a separation result and a density result.
This paper has been withdrawn because the new one gr-qc/0512095 includes all its results (as well as those in gr-qc/0507018), in a clearer way.
We develop causality theory for upper semi-continuous distributions of cones over manifolds generalizing results from mathematical relativity in two directions: non-round cones and non-regular differentiability assumptions. We prove the validity of most results of the regular Lorentzian causality theory including causal ladder, Fermats principle, notable singularity theorems in their causal formulation, Avez-Seifert theorem, characterizations of stable causality and global hyperbolicity by means of (smooth) time functions. For instance, we give the first proof for these structures of the equivalence between stable causality, $K$-causality and existence of a time function. The result implies that closed cone structures that admit continuous increasing functions also admit smooth ones. We also study proper cone structures, the fiber bundle analog of proper cones. For them we obtain most results on domains of dependence. Moreover, we prove that horismos and Cauchy horizons are generated by lightlike geodesics, the latter being defined through the achronality property. Causal geodesics and steep temporal functions are obtained with a powerful product trick. The paper also contains a study of Lorentz-Minkowski spaces under very weak regularity conditions. Finally, we introduce the concepts of stable distance and stable spacetime solving two well known problems (a) the characterization of Lorentzian manifolds embeddable in Minkowski spacetime, they turn out to be the stable spacetimes, (b) the proof that topology, order and distance (with a formula a la Connes) can be represented by the smooth steep temporal functions. The paper is self-contained, in fact we do not use any advanced result from mathematical relativity.
Recently, folk questions on the smoothability of Cauchy hypersurfaces and time functions of a globally hyperbolic spacetime M, have been solved. Here we give further results, applicable to several problems: (1) Any compact spacelike acausal submanifold H with boundary can be extended to a spacelike Cauchy hypersurface S. If H were only achronal, counterexamples to the smooth extension exist, but a continuous extension (in fact, valid for any compact achronal subset K) is still possible. (2) Given any spacelike Cauchy hypersurface S, a Cauchy temporal function T (i.e., a smooth function with past-directed timelike gradient everywhere, and Cauchy hypersurfaces as levels) with S equal to one of the levels, is constructed -thus, the spacetime splits orthogonally as $R times S$ in a canonical way. Even more, accura
This paper has been withdrawn because the new one gr-qc/0512095 includes all its results (as well as those in gr-qc/0511016) in a clearer way.
Given a globally hyperbolic spacetime $M$, we show the existence of a {em smooth spacelike} Cauchy hypersurface $S$ and, thus, a global diffeomorphism between $M$ and $R times S$.