A dynamical Thouless formula

Abstract

In this paper we establish an abstract, dynamical Thouless-type formula for affine families of $\mathrm{GL} (2,\mathbb{R})$ cocycles. This result extends the classical formula relating, via the Hilbert transform, the maximal Lyapunov exponent and the integrated density of states of a Schr\"odinger operator. Here, the role of the integrated density of states will be played by a more geometrical quantity, the fibered rotation number. As an application of this formula we present limitations on the modulus of continuity of random linear cocycles. Moreover, we derive H\"older-type continuity properties of the fibered rotation number for linear cocycles over various base dynamics.