$W^{1,p}$-metrics and conformal metrics with $L^{n/2}$-bounded scalar curvature

Abstract

A $W^{1,p}$-metric on an $n$-dimensional closed Riemannian manifold naturally induces a distance function, provided $p$ is sufficiently close to $n$. If a sequence of metrics $g_k$ converges in $W^{1,p}$ to a limit metric $g$, then the corresponding distance functions $d_{g_k}$ subconverge to a limit distance function $d$, which satisfies $d\le d_g$. As an application, we show that the above convergence result applies to a sequence of conformal metrics with $L^{n/2}$-bounded scalar curvatures, under certain geometric assumptions. In particular, in this special setting, the limit distance function $d$ actually coincides with $d_g$.

Communications in Contemporary Mathematics, to appear