We reprove the $lambda$-Lemma for finite dimensional gradient flows by generalizing the well-known contraction method proof of the local (un)stable manifold theorem. This only relies on the forward Cauchy problem. We obtain a rather quantitative desc
ription of (un)stable foliations which allows to equip each leaf with a copy of the flow on the central leaf -- the local (un)stable manifold. These dynamical thickenings are key tools in our recent work [Web]. The present paper provides their construction.
We introduce two tools, dynamical thickening and flow selectors, to overcome the infamous discontinuity of the gradient flow endpoint map near non-degenerate critical points. More precisely, we interpret the stable fibrations of certain Conley pairs
$(N,L)$, established in [2,3], as a dynamical thickening of the stable manifold. As a first application and to illustrate efficiency of the concept we reprove a fundamental theorem of classical Morse theory, Milnors homotopical cell attachment theorem [1]. Dynamical thickening leads to a conceptually simple and short proof.
In case of the heat flow on the free loop space of a closed Riemannian manifold non-triviality of Morse homology for semi-flows is established by constructing a natural isomorphism to singular homology of the loop space. The construction is also new
in finite dimensions. The main idea is to build a Morse filtration using Conley pairs and their pre-images under the time-$T$-map of the heat flow. A crucial step is to contract each Conley pair onto its part in the unstable manifold. To achieve this we construct stable foliations for Conley pairs using the recently found backward $lambda$-Lemma [31]. These foliations are of independent interest [23].
