Fréchet manifold

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In mathematics, in particular in nonlinear analysis, a Fréchet manifold is a topological space modeled on a Fréchet space in much the same way as a manifold is modeled on a Euclidean space.

More precisely, a Fréchet manifold consists of a Hausdorff space X with an atlas of coordinate charts over Fréchet spaces whose transitions are smooth mappings. Thus X has an open cover {Uα}α ε I, and a collection of homeomorphisms φα : Uα → Fα onto their images, where Fα are Fréchet spaces, such that

\phi_{\alpha\beta} := \phi_\alpha \circ \phi_\beta^{-1}|_{\phi_\beta(U_\beta\cap U_\alpha)} is smooth for all pairs of indices α, β.

[edit] Classification up to homeomorphism

It is by no means true that a finite-dimensional manifold of dimension n is globally homeomorphic to Rn, or even an open subset of Rn. However, in an infinite-dimensional setting, it is possible to classify “well-behaved” Fréchet manifolds up to homeomorphism quite nicely. A 1969 theorem of David Henderson states that every infinite-dimensional, separable, metric Fréchet manifold X can be embedded as an open subset of the infinite-dimensional, separable Hilbert space, H (up to linear isomorphism, there is only one such space).

The embedding homeomorphism can be used as a global chart for X. Thus, in the infinite-dimensional, separable, metric case, the “only” Fréchet manifolds are the open subsets of Hilbert space.

[edit] See also

[edit] References

  • Hamilton, Richard S. (1982). "The inverse function theorem of Nash and Moser". Bull. Amer. Math. Soc. (N.S.) 7 (1): 65–222. ISSN 0273-0979.  MR656198
  • Henderson, David W. (1969). "Infinite-dimensional manifolds are open subsets of Hilbert space". Bull. Amer. Math. Soc. 75: 759–762.  MR0247634