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First steps in symplectic topology
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1986 Russ. Math. Surv. 41 1
(http://iopscience.iop.org/0036-0279/41/6/R01)
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Uspekhi Mat. Nauk 41:6 (1986), 3-18 Russian Math. Surveys 41:6 (1986), 1-21
First steps in symplectic topology
(1)
V. I . Arnol'd
CONTENTS
Introduction 1
1. Is there such a thing as symplectic topology? 2
2. Generalizations of the geometric theorem of Poincare 4
3. Hyperbolic Morse theory 5
4. Intersections of Lagrangian manifolds 7
5. Legendrian submanifolds of contact manifolds 9
6. Lagrangian and Legendrian knots 11
7. Two theorems of Givental' on Lagrangian embeddings 13
8. Odd-dimensional analogues 15
9. Optical Lagrangian manifolds 16
References 19
Introduction
By symplectic topology I mean the discipline having the same relation to
ordinary topology as the theory of Hamiltonian dynamical systems has to
the general theory of dynamical systems. The correspondence here is similar
to that between real and complex geometry.
A complex linear space can be considered as an even-dimensional real
space, furnished with additional structure (the operation of multiplication
by /'). However, complexification of a theory does not boil down to
reducing the pile of spaces and the addition of a new operation: all the
concepts take on new meanings. For example, complex subspaces or
operators are not the same as subspaces or operators in the underlying real
space. Thus complex geometry is an analogue of real geometry, but not a
particular case of it.
In precisely the same way, symplectic geometry can be considered, of
course, as ordinary geometry in the presence of additional structure. But it
(1)
The papers of V.I. Arnol'd, A.N. Dranishnikov, E.V. Shchepin, and V.V. Fedorchuk
brought together in this issue are reports of plenary sessions held on 27-29 May 1986 at
the "Aleksandrov Colloquium" (jointly with a session of the Moscow Mathematical
Society and the All-Moscow topological seminar in the name of P.S. Aleksandrov (the
topological association)), dedicated to the 90th anniversary of Aleksandrov's birth
{Editor's note).
2 V.I. Arnol'd
is possible to adopt another point of view in which symplectic geometry can
be considered rather as an analogue of ordinary geometry in its own right.
For example, the symplectic group may be considered not as a subgroup of
a group of matrices of even order, but as the simple Lie group C
k
, having
equal rights with the group of non-singular matrices A
k
, not least in having a
distinctive system of roots and so on.
Questions of symplectic topology, which we shall be speaking about later,
can be considered as questions of ordinary topology in the presence of
additional structure. But of much greater interest to me is not the use of
ordinary topology in the study of objects of symplectic geometry, but
divining symplectic results by means of "symplectization".
Symplectization transforms not only the initial objects (manifolds,
maps, ...), but also the whole theory. For example, the concepts of
boundary and homology theory in symplectic topology are quite different
from the ordinary ones. The dimension of a "symplectic boundary" should
not be one, but two units less than the dimension of the original manifold
(lowering dimension in symplectic geometry is always accomplished in two
stages, one of which is section and the other projection).
I do not intend here to formalize these nebulous ideas^
1
^, but pass to
specific conjectures which they give rise to (omitting rather lengthy
intermediate considerations).
Some of the conjectures of this type published in the years 1965-1976
( [ 9] - [ 12] ) have recently been proved by Conley, Zehnder, Sicorav,
Gromov, and others, and powerful new techniques have been developed. It
seems to me that now is the time to return to other conjectures of this type
and even perhaps to look at the whole programme of symplectization.
Odd-dimensional variants (related to contact topology) are also considered
below.
The author thanks A.V. Alekseev, M.L. Byaly, Yu.V. Chekanov,
Ya.M. Eliashberg, D.B. Fuks, V.L. Ginzburg, A.V. Givental', V.P. Kolokol'tsov,
V.V. Kozlov, V.P. Maslov, S.P. Novikov, J. Nye, L.V. Polterovich,
E.V. Shchepin, A.I. Shnirel'man, and V.A. Vasil'ev for numerous useful
discussions.
1 . Is there such a thing as symplectic topology?
A symplectic structure on a manifold is a closed non-degenerate 2-form.
The simplest example of a symplectic manifold is the plane; the (oriented)
element of area provides the symplectic structure.
A symplectic diffeomorphism (or symplectomorphism) is a diffeomorphism
preserving the symplectic structure. It is clear that this condition puts a
regards symplectic boundaries see the theory of Lagrangian cobordism in [1] -[7];
the complexification of the concept of boundary is a branching divisor, Z
2
is replaced by
Z, Stiefel-Whitney classes by Chern classes, and so on (see [8]).
* First steps in symplectic topology
topological limitation on the diffeomorphism. For example, a region of
finite volume cannot be transformed by a symplectic diffeomorphism into
one lying strictly inside it, since a symplectic diffeomorphism sends any
region into one of the same volume.
A richer example is the "geometrical theorem" of Poincare (proved by
Birkhoff) according to which an area-preserving diffeomorphism of an
annulus that moves the two bounding circles in opposite directions has no
fewer than two fixed points. I mention also the theorem of Nikishin [ 13] :
a diffeomorphism of a two-dimensional sphere preserving oriented area has
no fewer than two fixed points.
Thus the topological properties of general diffeomorphisms and volume
(area) preserving diffeomorphisms are different. But do symplectic
diffeomorphisms have specific properties distinguishing them from those
preserving volume? This question has been formalized by Eliashberg in the
following way.
Can every volume-preserving diffeomorphism of a symplectic manifold of
dimension greater than two be approximated topologically (C) by a
symplectic diffeomorphism
1
.
If this were so, then the stable topological properties of volume-preserving
diffeomorphisms would be the same as for symplectic ones.
Recently Gromov has proved the "existence theorem of symplectic
topology", also formulated by Eliashberg.
Theorem [14]. If the limit of a uniformly (C) converging sequence of
symplectomorphisms is a diffeomorphism, then it is symplectic.
A typical question, showing how symplectic geometry differs from the
geometry of volume-preserving diffeomorphisms, is the following problem,
also investigated by Eliashberg and Gromov: can a symplectic camel go
through the eye of a needle?
What is meant by this is the following: can one by a symplectic isotopy
move a ball, lying in the left half-space of a four-dimensional standard
symplectic subspace, into the right half-space through an arbitrarily small
hole in the plane separating the two subspacesl
In the class of volume-preserving diffeomorphisms such an isotopy clearly
exists. Gromov has proved, however, that there is no symplectic isotopy: a
symplectic camel is prevented from going through a small gap by "symplectic
ribs"a special non-linear analogue of the inequalities of Rayleigh-Fisher-
Courant.
Of the unsolved problems of the geometry of symplectic diffeomorphisms
I mention also the following: is the diameter of the group of symplectic
diffeomorphisms of a ball with left-invariant standard metric bounded!
Shnirel'man has proved the boundedness of the diameter of the group of
volume-preserving diffeomorphisms of the three-dimensional ball [45].
Somewhat esoteric symplectic diffeomorphisms are those to which one is led
from positively twisting Hamiltonians (see [31], [33]).
4 V.I. Arnol'd
2. Generalizations of the geometric theorem of Poincare
Consider a symplectic (area preserving) diffeomorphism of a two
dimensional torus to itself, homotopic to the identity transformation. Such
a diffeomorphism is said to be homologous to the identity (or preserving the
centre of gravity) if it is given by a map of the plane, covering the torus,
> + / (x), for which the mean value of the periodic vector function / is
equal to zero.
A diffeomorphism homologous to the identity can be joined to the
identity by a one parameter family of symplectic diffeomorphisms in such a
way that the derivative with respect to the parameter is a Hamiltonian vector
field with single valued Hamiltonian, and, conversely, all symplectomorphisms
joining such a map to the identity are homologous to the identity.
Diffeomorphisms homologous to the identity form a group (the commutator
of the connected component of unity in the group of all symplectic
diffeomorphisms see [15]).
Poincare's geometric theorem (on the diffeomorphisms of an annulus)
generalizes in the following way (the conjecture of [9], [10], proved in
Theorem. A symplectomorphism of a torus homologous to the identity has
no fewer than four fixed points {taking multiplicities into account) and no
fewer than three geometrically distinct fixed points.
Poincare's theorem on transformations of an annulus can be obtained
from this as follows: a torus can be glued together from two symmetrically
placed annuli joined by intermediate annuli which are then moved along
themselves in opposite directions. By regulating the width of the intermediate
annuli one can arrange that the resulting diffeomorphism of the torus
preserves the centre of gravity. Half of its fixed points (that is, no fewer
than two of the fixed points) are to be found in the original annulus.
The following multidimensional generalization of Poincare's theorem was
formulated in [11], [12]:
Conjecture. A symplectomorphism of a compact manifold, homologous to
the identity transformation^, has at least as many fixed points as a smooth
function on the manifold has critical points.
(One has in mind in both cases either the number of geometrically
distinct points or the algebraic sum of the multiplicities.)
conjectured direct generalization of the theorem on the annulus was stated in [10]
(the condition of moving the boundaries in opposite directions is transformed into the
linking of the sphere S*
1
the boundary of a disc in the fibre of T*M
n
with its image
in the universal covering of the sphere bundle TIM"). This, it seems, has not been
proved.
^Joined by a one parameter family of symplectomorphisms with single valued (but time
dependent) Hflmiltonians.
First steps in symplectic topology 5
This conjecture has been proved in the following cases:
1) for two-dimensional surfaces ( [ 17] , [18]);
2) for the 2-dimensional torus with the standard symplectic structure
([19], [20], [21]);
3) for CP" with standard structure [ 22] ;
4) for many Kahler manifolds of negative curvature ( [ 18] , [23]);
5) for diffeomorphisms C-close to the identity [24].
Estimates, established by the conjecture, have been obtained for
diffeomorphisms enclose to the identity transformation (obtained by
integrating the Hamiltonian field over a small time interval). In the simplest
cases the minimal numbers of critical points are the following:
Manifold
Circle
Two-dimensional torus
Surface of genus g
2rt-dimensional torus
CP"
2
4
2?+2
2
2n
n + 1
2
3
3
2n+l
" + 1
For symplectic maps not homologous to the identity (but lying in the
same connected component of the group of symplectomorphisms) the
number of fixed points, clearly, is bounded below by the number of
critical points of a closed 1-form on the manifold (the inequalities of Morse
theory are replaced by the Novikov inequalities [25], [26]).
3. Hyperbolic Morse theory
The new technique, on which the proofs of the stated results are based, is
a fresh version of variational Morse theory for functionals, unbounded on
either side. The basis of the ordinary Morse theory of positive functionals is
the reduction of the problem to the finite-dimensional one by taking
account of the fact that the functional increases rapidly in the directions of
the "high harmonics" (of the Fourier series): it approaches infinity in
these directions like a positive-definite quadratic form. Fixing the finite-
dimensional information (the values of "the coefficients of the lower
harmonics"), we stratify the functional space into subspaces of finite
codimension. The restriction of a functional to such a subspace has a
unique minimum point, smoothly dependent on the point of the (finite-
dimensional) basis. The further choice of actual extremals from the
manifold of conditional extremals found is already a finite-dimensional
problem, solved by finite-dimensional Morse thoery, that is, by studying
functions on a finite-dimensional manifold. This manifold of conditional
extremals can be obtained by gradient descent along the subspaces of finite
codimension described above.
6 V.I. ArnoVd
Thus at the base of variational Morse theory there lies the structural
stability of linearly attracting equilibrium positions. The basic idea of the
new methods consists in the fact that instead of attracting equilibrium
positions one may use hyperbolic ones, which are also structurally stable
(theorems of Grobman Hart man, Anosov).
Hyperbolicity here has to be taken in the sense of the theory of dynamical
systems and not in the sense of the theory of partial differential equations:
the corresponding quadratic form has an infinite number of squares, as many
with plus as with minus.
I n applying these methods it is necessary that the functional under study
has the hyperbolicity property (on submanifolds of finite codimension
obtained by fixing the "coefficients of the lower harmonics"). An example
is the action functional \ p dq~ dt. Consider for simplicity the case of
one degree of freedom, when the functional is determined on curves
[0, 1] vR
2
= {(/>, q)}. On loops of curves, traversed in the positive
direction, the integral of pdq is positive, but in the negative direction it is
negative. If = p + iq, then e
iht
is traversed in the one direction for
positive and in the other for negative k.
I n this way high frequency hyperbolicity arises: the harmonics for large
\ k\ form spaces where the action functional grows or shrinks quadratically
(depending on the sign of k). The integral of Hdt, playing the role of
perturbation, does not invalidate this.
Suppose that is a periodic function of p, q, and t, and consider our
functional on closed curves. After reducing the problem to the finite
dimensional case one obtains a function on the space of the finite dimensional
vector bundle over the manifold under study, tending to infinity on each
fibre like a non degenerate quadratic form (of signature zero). An estimate
of the number of critical points of such a function is obtainable by means
of a generalization of Morse theory, the so called theory of the "Conley
index" [27].
As a result we obtain a lower bound for the number of critical points
of the action, that is, for the number of closed trajectories of Hamilton's
equations, and that means also for the number of fixed points of the
symplectomorphism brought about by the solutions of these equations over
a period. Finally, any symplectomorphism homologous to the identity can
be obtained in this way from a single valued Hamiltonian, periodic in
time. By this method Conley and Zehnder [19] have also proved a
generalization of the geometric theorem of Poincare (for a multidimensional
torus with standard symplectic structure).
More recently Chaperon [21] has developed a symplectic version of
Morse's theory of broken geodesies, based on a technically more convenient
finite dimensional approximation (broken geodesies in place of Fourier series).
First steps in symplectic topology 7
In the last few years many papers have appeared that use or develop this
method, for example [ 18] [ 24] , [16].
I n Sicorav's paper [28] the condition of preserving t he centre of gravity
is thrown awayin this case the number of fixed points is bounded below
by the number of critical points of a closed 1 form (a minimum for all
forms has been evaluated by Novikov [25], but for tori these bounds are
empty). It still remains unknown, however, "whether a symplectomorphism,
homologous to the identity, of a four dimensional torus with arbitrary
symplectic structure can have three different fixed points.
4. Intersections of Lagrangian manifolds
One of the general principles of symplectic geometry has been strikingly
formulated by Weinstein [29] in the following way: "everything in the
world is a Lagrangian manifold".
A Lagrangian submanifold of a symplectic manifold is a submanifold of
the greatest possible dimension on which the symplectic structure restricts t o
zero (this greatest dimension is equal t o half the dimension of the ambient
manifold).
Symplectomorphisms can be considered as Lagrangian manifolds. In fact,
the graph of a symplectomorphism (
1;
o^) * (M
2
,
2
) is a Lagrangian
submanifold of the product M
1

2
, furnished with the symplectic structure

1
7 2
2
(where

and
2
are the canonical projections of the product
on the first and second factors). Conversely, a diffeomorphism with a
Lagrangian graph is a symplectomorphism.
A Lagrangian submanifold of a product that is not the graph of a
diffeomorphism determines a symplectic correspondencea many valued
generalization of a symplectomorphism (or a "canonical transformation" of
classical mechanics).
The fixed points of a symplectomorphism are the points of intersection of
its graph with the diagonal. To estimate the number of fixed points of a
symplectomorphism it is enough therefore to estimate the number of points
of intersection of two Lagrangian manifolds, the graph and the diagonal.
The condition of preserving the centre of gravity is then transformed into
the condition of Hamiltonian homologousness: Lagrangian submanifolds are
Hamiltonian homologous if one of them can be obtained from the other by
means of a phase transformation of a Hamiltonian vector field with single
valued (time dependent) Hamiltonian.
In this way one obtains yet another conjectured generalization of the
Poincare conjecture:
The number of points of intersection of a symplectic correspondence with
one that is Hamiltonian homologous to it is not less than the minimal
number of critical points of a function on it (counting both sets of points
either algebraically with multiplicities, or geometrically).
8 V.I. Arnold
The simplest cases of this conjecture were discussed back in 1965 [9].
Consider as a symplectic manifold the space of the cotangent bundle T*B of
a manifold (that is, the phase space with configuration space B), furnished
with the standard symplectic structure "dpdq", and as a Lagrangian
submanifold L the zero section. For example, if is a circle, then T*B is a
cylinder and L is the equator.
The non compactness of the phase space compels one to make precise the
definition of Hamiltonian homologousness: a Lagrangian submanifold is
assumed to be compact and a Hamiltonian field to be of compact support
(equal to zero outside some compact set).
Theorem [30]. The number of points of intersection of the zero section of
the space of a cotangent bundle with a manifold Hamiltonian homologous to
it is not less than the sum of the Betti numbers of the manifold {taking
multiplicities into account) and is greater than the cohomological length
A curve on the cylinder that is Hamiltonian homologous to the central
circle is the embedding in the cylinder of a closed curve going around the
cylinder once in such a way that the oriented area between it and the
equator is equal to zero. Clearly such a curve has no fewer than two points
of intersection with the equator (just this consideration was the starting
point in Poincare's attempts to prove his "geometrical theorem" and in
Birkhoff s proof).
A neighbourhood of a Lagrangian manifold in a symplectic one is always
symplectomorphic to a neighbourhood of the zero section of the space of
a cotangent bundle [19].
Therefore from the bound on the number of points of intersection of
the zero section of a cotangent bundle with a Lagrangian submanifold
Hamiltonian homologous to it there follows the same bound for the
number of points of intersection of any Lagrangian manifold with any one
Hamiltonian homologous to it (in a sufficiently small neighbourhood). In
particular, one obtains a bound on the number of fixed points of a
symplectomorphism joined to the identity diffeomorphism in such a way
that the derivative has single valued Hamiltonian, while the trajectories of
the points are sufficiently small.
If the Lagrangian manifold is an dimensional torus, then the number of
points of intersection is not less than 2" (taking multiplicities into account),
including no fewer than + 1 geometrically distinct points.
Such bounds cannot be obtained for Lagrangian immersions: Fig. 1
shows an immersion in T*S
X
of a circle, Hamiltonian homologous to the zero
section in the sense that their difference is the boundary of a chain of area
zero, but nevertheless not intersecting the zero section (this effect was already
discussed in [9]).
First steps in symplectic topology
A condition under which Lagrangian immersions have no fewer points of
intersection than embeddings has recently been pointed out by
Yu.V. Chekanov. I ts formulation demands the simplest concepts of contact
geometry.
*

1
*s
1 "
^
'
Fig. 1. An exact Lagrangian immersion, not intersecting the null section.
5. Legendrian submanifolds of contact manifolds
A contact manifold is an odd dimensional manifold, possessing a maximally
non degenerate field of hyperplanes. A typical example is the three
dimensional sphere S
3
, which we shall consider as the boundary of a ball in
C
2
. The tangent complex lines form on S
3
a field of two dimensional planes
(one can define them also as the normals to the fibres of the Hopf fibration
S
3
> S
2
). In the same way one defines the standard contact structure on
any odd dimensional sphere of higher dimension. All contact manifolds of
the same dimension are locally contactomorphic.
The standard example is the manifold of 1 jets of functions. The 1 jet
(the part of the Taylor series of degree 1) of a function of variables is
given by the choice of 2n+ 1 numbers = (

..., ) (the source point ),

(the value of the function), and = (p
lt
..., p
n
) (the partial derivatives).
The natural contact structure is determined by the condition dy = pdx.
The space of 1 jets of functions on a manifold is fibred over the space of its
cotangent bundle (by means of the map forgetting the value of the function,
J\ B, R) * T*B).
A submanifold of a contact manifold is said t o be Legendrian if it is
integral and has the greatest possible dimension (n in a manifold of
dimension 2n+ 1). The 1 graph of a function may serve as an example
(y=f(x),p = bflbx).
The embedding of a Legendrian manifold in the space of 1 jets of
functions on it is said to be a quasi function if it is regularly homotopic to
the 1 graph of a function in the space of Legendrian embeddings
( 1)
.
With the C' topology: embeddings are said to be close to each other if they are close
not only in value but also in their derivatives.
10
V.I. Arnold
The natural projection J\ B, R) * T*B (forgetting the value of a function)
locally diffeomorphically maps Legendrian manifolds to immersed Lagrangian
manifolds. Each germ of a Lagrangian manifold in T*B is obtainable by this
construction from local quasi functions (because = \ pdx can be recovered
from the Lagrangian manifold). This quasi function is determined uniquely
up to an additive constant.
A point of a quasi function is said t o be critical if its projection on the
space of the cotangent bundle belongs t o its zero section.
Theorem (Chekanov). A quasi function has at least as many critical points
as the sum of the Betti numbers of the manifold (taking multiplicities into
account), and among them the number of geometrically different critical
points is greater than the cohomological length.
Example. Fig. 2 shows two Lagrangian immersions of a circle in T*S
1
.
They are bot h projections of Legendrian embeddings of a circle in J^iS
1
, R)
(that is, p dx=0). But these embeddings are not regularly homotopic in
the class of Legendrian embeddings.
Fig. 2. A quasi function and a non quasi function
I n fact, to the Lagrangian curve on the left there corresponds a quasi
function (a Legendrian curve is one regularly homotopic to a 1 graph in the
class of Legendrian embeddings). For this Lagrangian curve can be deformed
into a section in the class of Lagrangian immersions with p dx = 0,
without creating any Legendrian self intersections.
To the Lagrangian curve on the right there corresponds a Legendrian
embedding of a circle that is not a quasi function: it is not regularly
homotopic to a 1 graph in the class of Legendrian embeddings (though it is
regularly homotopic to a 1 graph in the class of all embeddings). For if it
were regularly homotopic to a 1 graph in the class of Legendrian embeddings
(in brief, Legendrian homotopic), then its Lagrangian curve would intersect
the zero section in two points (by Chekanov's theorem), and this is not so.
Remark. The number of points of intersection in the theorems of
Laudenbach Sicorav and Chekanov can be bounded below by the
First steps in symplectic topology 11
"stable minimal number of critical points" of a function on the manifold
under study. This number may be defined as follows. Consider a vector
bundle over this manifold with fibre of dimension 27V and functions on it
coinciding outside a tubular neighbourhood of the zero section with a
quadratic form of signature NN on each fibre. The minimal number of
critical points of such functions (for all fibrations) then serves as a lower
bound for the number of points of intersection.
It appears not to be known whether this number coincides with the
minimal number of critical points of functions on the manifold. In
examplesfor surfaces, tori, projective spaces, and so onthe two numbers
usually coincide and both are equal to the sum of the Betti numbers (if one
counts points with multiplicities) or both are equal to the Lyusternik-
Shnirel'man category (if one counts geometrically different critical points).
It is not known also whether it is possible to bound the number of
points of intersection below by the minimal number of critical points
of functions on the original manifold in the theorems of Chekanov and
Laudenbach-Sicorav, that is, whether it is true that the number of critical
points of a quasi-function is no smaller than that of a function.
The generalization of Chekanov's theorem for closed 1-forms (with
Novikov's theory [25] replacing Morse theory) remains an open question.
6. Lagrangian and Legendrian knots
By a Lagrangian {Legendrian) knot I mean a connected component of the
space of Lagrangian (Legendrian) embeddings in a fixed symplectic (contact)
manifold
(1)
.
Example 1. Consider Legendrian knots in the sphere S
3
with its standard
contact structure. An embedding S
1
-* S
3
determines a knot in the usual
sense. For each knot in the usual sense one can choose an isotopic
Legendrian embedding (this follows easily from the classical theorems of
Caratheodory or Rashevsky and Chow). However, these embeddings,
determining the same ordinary knot, may determine different Legendrian
knots. One may convince oneself that this is so, for example, with the help
of the "Maslov index", determined here by the following construction
(see [31]).
Considering S
3
as the boundary of a ball in C
2
, let us furnish each point
of the embedded curve with the outward unit normal vector and the unit
tangent vector. The condition that the curve is Legendrian means precisely
that these unit vectors are Hermitian orthogonal. The frame determines a
may take as the basis of the diffeomorphism either isotopies of the ambient
manifold or of the complement of the submanifold, preserving the corresponding
structure (one can also demand single-valuedness of the Hamiltonian isotopy).
12 V.I. Arnol'd
map of the embedded circle to the unitary group. Together with the
determinant it gives a map of oriented circles:
7, ,
Idet
- S
The degree of this map is said to be the index.
Theorem (Alekseev)
(1)
. The index is the only invariant of Legendrian
immersions of a circle in S
3
: all Legendrian immersions of the same index
are regularly homotopic in the class of Legendrian immersions and all values
of the index are realized on Legendrian embeddings from a C-neighbourhood
of any map S
1
-* S
3
.
In particular, there are infinitely many Legendrian non-homotopic
Legendrian embeddings, unknotted in the ordinary sense: they differ by
values of the index. Legendrian knots, unknotted in the ordinary sense, are
said to be purely Legendrian.
Example 2. In the three-dimensional space /
1
( R, R) = {(x, y, p)} with
contact structure dy pdx consider a Legendrian curve R - J
1
, coinciding
outside the unit ball with centre at the origin with the embedding of the
jc-axis.
Any knot in R
3
can be realized by such a curve. Even if this curve is
unknotted in the ordinary sense, it may be purely Legendrian knotted, as
Fig. 2 shows. This example shows, evidently, that there are more different
Legendrian knots in S
3
than simply ordinary knots, furnished with the
Maslov index.
A multidimensional analogue of the preceding construction is determined
by the "Gaussian" map of a Legendrian submanifold L""
1
S
2n
~
x
in the
Lagrangian Grassmann manifold

= U(n)/ O(n). For = 2 this manifold

is the space of the non trivial sphere bundle over the circle [33] (both
proofs of triviality in [34] are in error).
For Lagrangian embeddings R
2
* R
4
(coinciding with embeddings of the
plane 0 outside some sphere in the standard four dimensional symplectic
space) not a single knotted example is known. Both the following questions
here are open.
1) Can any knot in the ordinary sense be realized by a Lagrangian one! (I t
is not known even whether there is a Lagrangian embedding knotted in the
ordinary sense, that is, not homotopic to an embedding of the plane in the
class of not necessarily Lagrangian embeddings.)
is is a particular case of Alekseev's general theory of immersions in a space with a
non holonomic distribution, generalizing Smale's theory of immersions [32].
First steps in symplectic topology
13
2) Are there purely Lagrangian knots, t hat is, Lagrangian embeddings
homotopic to the plane in the class of all (not necessarily Lagrangian)
embeddings, but non homotopic in the class of Lagrangian embeddings?
Remark 1. By a homotopy of a Lagrangian embedding in general position
in the class of embeddings we obtain a series of metamorphoses of caustics
of embeddings. Locally each typical caustic or typical metamorphosis of a
caustic on the plane is realizable as a caustic or metamorphosis of a
Lagrangian surface. Therefore the question reduces t o the study of
obstructions to the global realization of caustics and their metamorphoses as
lines of critical values of an embedded Lagrangian surface. For immersions
there is no obstruction (Alekseev).
Remark 2. A "Lagrangian knot " R" > R
2
" determines an element of the
homotopy group 7 ( ) of the Lagrangian Grassmann manifold. I t is not
known whether this element can be non trivial or whether there are
characteristic classes coming from the cohomology groups of the Lagrangian
Grassmannian, enabling one t o distinguish purely Lagrangian knots.
7. Two theorems of Givental' on Lagrangian embeddings
Consider an embedding R" * T*R
n
, obtained from the zero section by a
symplectic isotopy with compact carrier. The projection of a Lagrangian
submanifold onto the base of the fibration is said to be a Lagrangian
projection. Consider a regular value of a Lagrangian projection. All its
inverse images are regular points. The Maslov index of a regular point is
defined as the Maslov index of a curve coming from infinity to this point on
our Lagrangian manifold (the index of intersection with the manifold of
singularities, see [31] for more details). On Fig. 3 the value of the Maslov
index has been written against each point.

Fig. 3. The indices of points for a Lagrangian embedding and for an immersion
Theorem (Givental') Over each regular value there is an inverse image point
of index zero.
This theorem was formulated as a conjecture and has been proved in the
one dimensional case by Kolokol'tsov. For immersions the theorem is not
true (Fig. 3, on the right).
A second theorem is obtained by trying to symplectify the fact that an
embedding M
n c
* N
n
induces an inclusion of homology groups.
14 V.I. Arnold
A Lagrangian submanifold of the space of a cotangent bundle is said to be
exact if it is the projection of a Legendrian submanifold of the space of
1 jets of functionsin other words, if the "generating function" <f> dq is
single valued.
Theorem. An exact Lagrangian embedding M
n <=
^ T*N
n
of a compact
manifold may be extended to a symplectic embedding T*M
n c
^ T*N" (the
original embedding being realized as the zero section).
Remark. Conversely, for any embedding of the space of a cotangent bundle
there is a Lagrangian section whose image is exact (because there is a closed
1 form with arbitrary periods). Therefore the theorem implies that an exact
Lagrangian embedding exists if and only if there exists a symplectic
embedding of the space of the cotangent bundle.
Proof. Consider an Eulerian field in t he fibres of the cotangent bundle.
This field e is equal t o zero on the zero section and satisfies the condition
Z,
e
co = di
e
a> = , where is the symplectic structure.
A neighbourhood of an embedded Lagrangian submanifold is
symplectomorphic to a neighbourhood of the zero section in the space of
the cotangent bundle T*M [29]. Therefore two Eulerian fields are defined
on the neighbourhood in question: e
0
, Eulerian for T*N, and e, Eulerian for
T*M.
Consider their difference, w = e~e
0
. This field on the neighbourhood is
Hamiltonian: L
W
GU = 0, /
w
co = dH. The Hamiltonian is single valued if the
embedding is exact. In fact, for closed paths lying on M, AH = & i
w
o> =
( )
,
since e is equal to zero on M. The latter integral on the Lagrangian
manifold is equal t o the increment of the "generating function", and on an
exact submanifold it is equal to zero. Thus is a function single valued on a
submanifold and therefore also on its neighbourhood. Continue over the
whole space of T*N in such a way that in a neighbourhood of infinity
= 0. The field "e = e
o
+ w, where w is Hamiltonian with Hamiltonian in
the whole space T*N, coincides with e in a neighbourhood of the embedded
manifold, and at infinity it coincides with e
0
. Solutions of the equation
= e(z) are continuable without bound and induce a symplectic embedding
T*M
(
* * on the union of all trajectories starting near the image of M.
Remark. From Givental's theorem is follows that for the proof of the non
existence of exact embeddings it is enough to prove the following result.
Givental's conjecture. For an exact Lagrangian embedding there is a point
such that all the trajectories of the Eulerian field!! (constructed in the
proof), beginning at the point, go off to infinity.
I t is conjectured, moreover, that this property is possessed by almost all
points.
First steps in symplectic topology 15
From the conjecture it follows that a symplectic embedding
(M compact, dim = dim N = n) induces an isomorphism of the
dimensional homology groups. For if all the trajectories from t he point in
go to infinity, then they form an dimensional non compact cycle,
intersecting the fundamental cycle with index 1.
Corollary 1. No compact manifold admits an exact Lagrangian embedding
in T*R" with the standard symplectic structure.
This conjecture was discussed long ago (see [35]) and has recently been
proved in another way by Gromov [14].
Corollary 2. The image of the zero section in T*M under the action of a
symplectomorphism homologous to the identity intersects the zero section.
Otherwise there would be an exact Lagrangian embedding of two non
intersecting copies of in T*M, reducing t he fundamental class of t he
difference to 0.
8. Odd dimensional analogues
Theorems on fixed points of symplectomorphisms and on intersections of
Lagrangian manifolds can be reformulated as assertions about closed phase
curves and about Legendrian chains in special contact spaces. By carrying
these ideas over to more general contact manifolds we obtain many new
conjectures.
Suppose that a contact structure is given as a field of zeros of a 1 form.
All such contact \ forms are distinguished by a non invertible nowhere zero
factor. The choice of a contact form a determines a field of characteristic
directions (the kernels of da), everywhere transversal to the contact plane
a "= 0.
If the integral curves of the field of kernels form a fibration, then its base
is a symplectic manifold and the preceding theorem is applicable. However,
by changing the factor in the form a the field changes and the fibration
disappears. Symplectic results, formulated without reference to the
fibration, also serve as contact conjectures.
Example. Consider a closed Legendrian curve (let us say in S
3
with its
standard contact structure). For the standard 1 form the characteristics are
fibres of the Hopf fibration S
3
S
2
. The projection of the Legendrian
curve on S
2
is a curve immersed in the two dimensional sphere bounding a
chain of area 0 (mod 4 ).
A curve of area 0 has a point of self intersection. We obtain the following
conjecture.
Conjecture. Every closed Legendrian curve in S
3
with standard contact
structure has for any choice of contact l form a characteristic chord (it
intersects twice some integral curve of the field of kernels of the form da).
16 V.I. Arnol'd
By the same considerations for each immersion of a Legendrian manifold
(let us say in S*"*
1
or in R
2
"*
1
with the standard contact structure) for any
choice of contact 1 form, for any C close Legendrian immersion one must
find an interval of characteristics, starting at an embedded Legendrian
manifold and ending at another (and, moreover, the number of such
intervals must be bounded below by inequalities of Morse type).
In this direction all that has been proved is the following generalization of
Poincare's geometric theorem.
Consider :
2 + 1
^
2
, a fibration with fibre an oriented circle. Let
be a closed non degenerate 2 form on the fibration space. We shall say that
preserves the centre of gravity if its cohomology class [ ] *{ ) is
induced from the base (belongs to p*H*(B)), that is, if the integral of over
vertical cycles is equal to zero.
Theorem (Ginzburg). / / the characteristic field (the field of kernels) of a
form preserving the centre of gravity is enclose to the field of the directions
of the fibres of the fibration, then the number of closed characteristics close
to the fibres once traversed is not less than the sum of the Betti numbers of
the base (if the characteristics are non degenerate or counted with
multiplicities), and among them the number of geometrically distinct closed
characteristics is not less than the category of the base for = 1; for > 1
the number of characteristics is not less than v(p).
Remark, ^ closeness may here be replaced by C closeness (as in the
theorem on fixed points of symplectomorphisms, by contactization of which
the present result has been obtained) and perhaps also by a still weaker
condition.
If one does not ask for preservation of the centre of gravity, then the
inequalities of Morse type must be replaced by inequalities of Novikov
type [25].
Example. Consider the motion of a charged point on a Riemann surface of
genus g in a transverse magnetic field not reducible to zero.
From the theorem it follows that if the initial speed v
0
is sufficiently
small, then there exist (taking multiplicities into account) no fewer than
2g+2 closed trajectories (curves of prescribed geodesic curvature
k(x) = H(x)/ v
o
y
Here E
3
* is a manifold of energy level, while is the sum of the
restriction of the symplectic structure and the 2 form HdS induced from M.
In this situation there are supposedly 2g+2 closed curves on any energy
level (see [25], [26], [36]).
9. Optical Lagrangian manifolds
A Lagrangian submanifold of the space of a cotangent bundle is said to be
optical if it lies in a hypersurface transversal to the fibres, the intersections
First steps in symplectic topology 17
of which with the fibres are quadratically convex at every point (with
respect to the natural affine structure of the fibres).
Example. The solution of the eikonal equation (dS/ dq)
2
= 1 determines the
optical Lagrangian submanifold = dS/ dq of the hypersurface p
2
= 1.
Every stable Lagrangian singularity is locally realizable as the singularity
of the projection of an optical Lagrangian manifold (even the manifold of
the preceding example) onto the base [37]. However, the global property
of being put in a hypersurface of phase space, convex with respect t o
momenta, imposes restrictions on the co existence of singularities. For t he
same reason not all local metamorphoses of caustics are realized in the class
of optical Lagrangian singularities (singularities born under metamorphosis
may be shown to be incompatible for optical caustics).
The first examples of this type were discovered by Nye [38], who
unsuccessfully tried to realize with the aid of a laser the bifurcation of the
birth of a "flying saucer" and then proved that it could not be realized in
optics. The general theory, presented below, is due t o Chekanov [ 39] .
Fig. 4. A flying saucera non optical caustic.
Consider the manifold of critical points of the projection of a Lagrangian
manifold onto the base of the cotangent bundle. For Lagrangian manifolds in
general position (it is unimportant whether they are optical or not ) this
critical submanifold of the Lagrangian manifold is a hypersurface in it (it is
defined in it by a single equation). On this hypersurface there are singular
points forming in it a set of codimension 2 (similar to the vertex on the
surface of a cone). We suppose now that the manifold is optical and in
general position.
Definition. The characteristic direction of a hypersurface in a symplectic
space is the skew orthogonal complement to its tangent hyperplane (that is,
the direction of a Hamiltonian field whose Hamiltonian is constant on the
hypersurface).
Theorem (Chekanov). The characteristic direction of a convex fibred
hypersurface containing an optical Lagrangian manifold is not tangent to the
set of critical points of its projection (even at the singular points of this set).
Corollary. On the non singular part of the critical variety there is defined
a smooth field of directions, coinciding with the field of kernels of a
Lagrangian map at points where the kernel is one dimensional and touches
the critical variety.
18 V.I. Arnold
This field is cut out by the two dimensional plane spanned by the kernel
and the characteristic direction of the convex fibred hypersurface.
Corollary. The Euler characteristic of a smooth compact optical critical
manifold is equal to zero.
I n particular, it follows from this that the optical realization of the
metamorphosis of t he birth of a flying saucer is impossible (Fig. 4; "pancake"
in Zel'dovich's terminology [40], [41], "lip" in Thorn's): (
2
) 0.
I n [39] Chekanov proved the formula + 2(#D^+ #D\ A) = 0, expressing
the Euler characteristic of a compact two dimensional critical manifold in
terms of the number of critical points of type Z)
4
(in the optical case one
has to distinguish not two, as usual, but three versions of D
4
, corresponding
to the three types of umbilical point).
I n a space of any dimension no metamorphoses of the type "lip" or
"pancake" (of any signature) are realized as optical. In the three dimensional
case the metamorphosis of D~^ (the birth of two pyramids) is not realized;
all the remaining metamorphoses (A
4
, A
5
, D%, D
s
) are realizable optically
and have been observed in experiments.
I n the optical situation one can repeat the constructions of Vasil'ev
complexes, algebraizing the adjacency relations of singularities, and the
computation of the Lagrangian and Legendrian cobordism rings (see [ 1 ] [7]) .
The theory of Lagrangian and Legendrian knots (see above in 6) gives rise
in the optical case to a special form of the theory of optical knots. An
optical Lagrangian manifold is invariant relative to the corresponding
Hamiltonian flow (for which the level surface of the Hamilton function is a
convex fibred hypersurface). Therefore globally optical manifolds, as a rule,
are rigid (like Kolmogorov tori) on a fixed level surface of the Hamilton
function. Therefore in defining homotopies of optical manifolds it is natural
t o admit deformations of the ambient hypersurface (preserving its convex
sets).
Some Lagrangian knots do not a priori admit optical realizations. Some
Lagrangian regularly homotopic optical manifolds may be optically non
homotopic (untying a Lagrangian knot may a priori demand that one goes
outside the class of Lagrangian manifolds, embedded in convex hypersurfaces).
I note an interesting property, recently proved for Lagrangian manifolds
of the hypersurface of cotangent unit vectors of a Riemannian torus:
Theorem (Byalyi and Polterovich [42]). A Lagrangian section belonging to
the stated hypersurface is filled up with lifts in the phase space of geodesies,
minimal between any of their points on the covering plane of the torus;
conversely, an invariant torus whose geodesies possess this property of
minimality is necessarily a section.
Apparently an analogous theorem is true not only for geodesic flows, but
generally also for optical Lagrangian manifolds.
First steps in symplectic topology 19
The proof would be rather simple if it were possible to join the torus
under study with a section of a continuous family of optical Lagrangian tori
(deforming along with the torus and containing its convex hypersurface: the
minimality is an obstruction to the birth of caustics.
Exactly this analysis of the dependence of the character of the extremum
of variational principles for Kolmogorov tori on their situation in the space
of the cotangent bundle has led the author and Shchepin to problems on
Lagrangian and Legendrian knots.
Remark. A Lagrangian embedding T
2
c - T*T* cannot realize more than a
single generator of the two-dimensional homology group of phase space.
In fact, otherwise, going over to the #-fold cover, we would obtain q
mutually non-intersecting Lagrangian embeddings. Each of these is obtained
from another symplectomorphism with single-valued Hamiltonian (induced
by a shift of the base). According to Sicorav's theorem (4) the manifolds
must intersect each other.
More generally, a two-dimensional submanifold in T'T
1
may cover the
base with arbitrary multiplicity. Therefore, Lagrangianness sets a global
bound on an embedding. Multidimensional generalizations are obvious.
It is instructive that such natural problems and theorems of symplectic
topology as the problem of Lagrangian knots and Chekanov's theorem on
the topological properties of the critical sets of generalized solutions of the
Hamilton-Jacobi equations with Hamiltonians convex with respect to
momenta, were discovered only as a result of experiments in laser optics
[38] and the analysis of the variational principles of Percival, Aubri, and
others, connected with the theory of corrosion ([43], [44]).
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Translated by I.R. Porteous Moscow State University
Received by the Editors 4 September 1986