Lorentzian Cayley Form

Abstract

Cayley 4-form Phi on an 8-dimensional manifold M is a real differential form of a special algebraic type, which determines a Riemannian metric on M as well as a unit real Weyl spinor. It defines a Spin(7) structure on M, and this Spin(7) structure is integrable if and only if Phi is closed. We introduce the notion of a complex Cayley form. This is a one-parameter family of complex 4-forms Phi_tau on M of a special algebraic type. Each Phi_tau determines a real Riemannian metric on M, as well as a complex unit Weyl spinor psi_tau. The subgroup of GL(8,R) that stabilises Phi_tau, tau not=0 is SU(4), and Phi_tau defines on $M$ an SU(4) structure. We show that this SU(4) structure is integrable if and only if Phi_tau is closed. We carry out a similar construction for the split signature case. There are now two one-parameter families of complex Cayley forms. A complex Cayley form of one type defines an SU(2,2) structure, a form of the other type defines an SL(4,R) structure on M. As in the Riemannian case, these structures are integrable if and only of the corresponding complex Cayley forms are closed. Our central observation is that there exists a special member of the second one-parameter family of complex Cayley forms, which we call the Lorentzian Cayley form. This 4-form has the property that it is calibrated by Lorentzian 4-dimensional subspaces H,H^perp. In particular, in a basis adapted to such a calibration, the Lorentzian Cayley form is built from the complex self-dual 2-forms for H,H^perp. We explain how these observations solve a certain puzzle that existed in the context of 4-dimensional Lorentzian geometry.