Complete metrics with constant fractional higher order $Q$-curvature on the punctured sphere

Abstract

This manuscript is devoted to constructing complete metrics with constant higher fractional curvature on punctured spheres with finitely many isolated singularities. Analytically, this problem is reduced to constructing singular solutions for a conformally invariant integro-differential equation that generalizes the critical GJMS problem. Our proof follows the earlier construction in Ao {\it et al.} \cite{MR3694645}, based on a gluing method, which we briefly describe. Our main contribution is to provide a unified approach for fractional and higher order cases. This method relies on proving Fredholm properties for the linearized operator around a suitably chosen approximate solution. The main challenge in our approach is that the solutions to the related blow-up limit problem near isolated singularities need to be fully classified; hence we are not allowed to use a simplified ODE method. To overcome this issue, we approximate solutions near each isolated singularity by a family of half-bubble tower solutions. Then, we reduce our problem to solving an (infinite-dimensional) Toda-type system arising from the interaction between the bubble towers at each isolated singularity. Finally, we prove that this system's solvability is equivalent to the existence of a balanced configuration.