EQUIVALENT DEFINITIONS OF TANGENT SPACES

MATH 4033, FALL 2011 - NOTE 2

Alternative denitions: (1). As tangents to M inside Rn : Suppose M R and p M . A smooth curve around p is a smooth map : (, ) M with (0) = p. We can also view as a smooth map into Rn so that (0) Rn is dened. This (0) is called a tangent to M at p. Then Tp (M ) is the set of all such tangents, and it turns out to be a vector space. This is the denition given in [1]. (2). As tangency classes: Let M be a k-dimensional manifold which is abstractly dened (i.e. without any reference to an embedding into Rn ). Let (U, ) be a local chart at p. Two curves , at p are said to be in the same tangency class if D( )(0) = D( )(0) Here we have used the notation d D( )(0) = ( (t))|t=0 dt One checks easily that this notion of tangency classes is independent of the choice of the local chart (U, ). We let Tp (M ) be the set of all tangency classes at p. If (U, ) is a local chart at p then the map D( )(0) induces a bijection from Tp M to Rk . Hence Tp M is a vector space. This vector space structure on Tp (M ) is independent of the choice of the local chart. Let (x1 , , xk ) be the local coordinate system dened by a chart (U, ). In other words (z) = (x1 (z), , xk (z)) Rk for z U . Suppose xi (p) = ai . We let be the tangency class dened by the curve i (t) where xi i (t) = ai + t while xi xj i (t) = aj for j = i. In other words i (t) = 1 (a1 , , ai1 , ai + t, ai+1 , , ak ) is nothing but the inverse image of the i-th standard basis vector of Rk xi under the bijection of Tp (M ) with Rk . (3). As derivations: First we establish some notations. The algebra of all smooth functions on M will be denoted O(M ). If U M is an open subset then it is also a manifold, and hence O(U ) is dened. Let p M . Consider the set of all pairs (U, f ), where U is an open neighborhood of p and f is a smooth function on U . Two such pairs (U, f ) and (V, g) are said to be equivalent if there is an open set W containing p and contained in U V , such that f |W = g|W . Let Op = Op (M ) be the set of equivalence classes of such pairs. Elements of Op (M ) are called germs of smooth functions at p. Given two classes represented by (U, f ) and (V, g), their sum and products are the classes represented by (U V, f + g) and (U V, f g) respectively. This turns Op (M ) into a ring. In Thus
Date: September 23, 2011.
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MATH 4033, FALL 2011 - NOTE 2

addition, Op (M ) is a vector space over R in a obvious way. Thus Op (M ) is an algebra. In the literature the algebra Op (M ) is called the local ring of germs of smooth functions at p, or simply the local ring at p. By abuse of notations, if f is a smooth function dened on a neighborhood of p, we shall use f to denote the germ in Op (M ) represented by f . We will write f Op (M ) which strictly speaking means the equivalence class dened by f belongs to Op (M ). A derivation on Op (M ) with values in R is a linear map : Op (M ) R satisfying the Leibiniz rule: (f g) = f (p)(g) + (f )g(p) We let D(Op ) be the space of all derivation of Op . Now let Tp (M ) be as dened in (2) above. Any v Tp (M ) is represented by a curve . We dene a derivation (v) by (v)(f ) = d f (t)|t=0 dt

From (4) below we shall see that the map : Tp (M ) D(Op (M )) just dened is actually linear isomorphism. Hence we can dene Tp (M ) as the space of derivations of the local ring Op (M ). (4). As dual of the cotangent space: Let Mp Op be the ideal dened by f (p) = 0. More precisely, Mp = {f Op | f (p) = 0}
Then Tp (M ) = Mp /M2 is the cotangent space. We dene Tp (M ) as the dual p vector space to Tp (M ). For any f Op we let df (p) be the image of f f (p) in Tp (M ). Using Taylor expansion, we easily see that if (x1 , , xk ) is a local coordinate system at p then dx1 , , dxk is a basis of Tp (M ). Thus Tp (M ) and Tp (M ) both have dimension k. We identify R with the germs dened by constant functions. Then clearly we have Op = R + Mp . If is a derivation, then it vanishes on the constants so it is completely determined by its restriction to Mp . On the other hand, by the Lebinitz rule we see also vanishes on M2 . Hence it denes a linear functional p : Tp (M ) R Conversely, if is any linear functional on Tp (M ) then we can view it as functional on Mp by the composition 2 Mp Mp /CMp = Tp (M ) R

Now we further extend to Op = R + Mp by making it equal to 0 on R. We claim that in this way becomes a derivation. Let f, g Op . We write f g = f (p)g(p) + (f f (p))(g g(p)) + (f f (p))g(p) + f (p)(g g(p))

EQUIVALENT DEFINITIONS OF TANGENT SPACES

Since vanishes on the constant f (p)g(p) and on (f f (p))(g g(p)) M2 , we p get (f g) = (f f (p)) g(p) + f (p) (g g(p)) = (f ) g(p) + f (p) (g) Thus is a derivation, and we have established the identication D(Op ) = (Mp /M2 ) = Tp (M ) p We let
<, >: Tp (M ) Tp (M ) R denote the canonical pairing between Tp (M ) and Tp (M ). If

is the tangency xi

class dened in (2) above then clearly , dxj >= ij < xi To summarize again, , is a basis of Tp (M ) while dx1 , , dxk is a x1 xk basis for Tp (M ), and the two bases are dual to each other. References
1. Calculus on Manifolds, Lecture notes by Li Wei-Ping