No abstract

Abstract. We give an estimate for the distance function related to the Kobayashi metric on a bounded strictly pseudoconvex domain with C 2 -smooth boundary. Our formula relates the distance function on the domain with the Carnot-Carathéodory metric on the boundary. The estimate is precise up to a bounded additive term. As a corollary we conclude that the domain equipped with this distance function is hyperbolic in the sense of Gromov. Mathematics Subject Classification (2000). Primary 32H15, Secondary 32F15.

We solve Gromov's dimension comparison problem for Hausdorff and box counting dimension on Carnot groups equipped with a Carnot-Carathéodory metric and an adapted Euclidean metric. The proofs use sharp covering theorems relating optimal mutual coverings of Euclidean and Carnot-Carathéodory balls, and elements of sub-Riemannian fractal geometry associated to horizontal self-similar iterated function systems on Carnot groups. Inspired by Falconer's work on almost sure dimensions of Euclidean self-affine fractals we show that Carnot-Carathéodory self-similar fractals are almost surely horizontal. As a consequence we obtain explicit dimension formulae for invariant sets of Euclidean iterated function systems of polynomial type. Jet space Carnot groups provide a rich source of examples.

We prove the equivalence of three different geometric properties of metric-measure spaces with controlled geometry. The first property is the Gromov hyperbolicity of the quasihyperbolic metric. The second is a slice condition and the third is a combination of the Gehring-Hayman property and a separation condition.

We describe a procedure for constructing "polar coordinates" in a certain class of Carnot groups. We show that our construction can be carried out in groups of Heisenberg type and we give explicit formulas for the polar coordinate decomposition in that setting. The construction makes use of nonlinear potential theory, specifically, fundamental solutions for the p-sub-Laplace operators. As applications of this result we obtain exact capacity estimates, representation formulas and an explicit sharp constant for the Moser-Trudinger inequality. We also obtain topological and measuretheoretic consequences for quasiregular mappings.