This book provides an up-to-date introduction to the theory of manifolds, submanifolds, semi-Riemannian geometry and warped product geometry, and their applications in geometry and physics. It then explores the properties of conformal vector fields and conformal transformations, including their fixed points, essentiality and the Lichnerowicz conjecture. Later chapters focus on the study of conformal vector fields on special Riemannian and Lorentzian manifolds, with a special emphasis on general relativistic spacetimes and the evolution of conformal vector fields in terms of initial data. The book also delves into the realm of Ricci flow and Ricci solitons, starting with motivations and basic results and moving on to more advanced topics within the framework of Riemannian geometry. The main emphasis of the book is on the interplay between conformal vector fields and Ricci solitons, and their applications in contact geometry. The book highlights the fact that Nil-solitons and Sol-solitons naturally arise in the study of Ricci solitons in contact geometry. Finally, the book gives a comprehensive overview of generalized quasi-Einstein structures and Yamabe solitons and their roles in contact geometry. It would serve as a valuable resource for graduate students and researchers in mathematics and physics as well as those interested in the intersection of geometry and physics.

Autorentext

Ramesh Sharma is Professor of Mathematics at the University of New Haven in Connecticut, USA, as well as Adjunct Professor at Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Learning in Puttaparthi, Andhra Pradesh India. He earned his B.Sc. (Hons.) degree in 1974, M.Sc. degree in Mathematics in 1976, and his Ph.D. in Mathematics in 1980, all from Banaras Hindu University in India. He later obtained a second Ph.D. in Mathematics in 1986 from the University of Windsor in Canada. He specializes in contact, conformal, and Lorentzian geometries and has published over 100 research articles. He has also been recognized with various prestigious awards such as the Fulbright Lecturing Grant (India) in 2005, the Yale University Visiting Faculty Fellowship, and a Travel Fellowship of Connecticut Space Grant College Consortium (NASA). Sharief Deshmukh is Professor of Mathematics at King Saud University in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. He obtained his B.Sc. and M.Sc. degrees in Mathematics from Mathwada University, India, in 1972 and 1974, respectively. He then went on to pursue his M.Phil. and Ph.D. degrees in Mathematics from Aligarh Muslim University, India, in 1978 and 1980, respectively. His research interests span a diverse range of topics in mathematics, including submanifolds, the spectrum of Riemannian manifolds, Lie groups, conformal geometry, Ricci solitons, differential equations on manifolds, and Yamabe solitons. With more than 186 research papers published in highly respected international journals, he has delivered lectures at numerous conferences and research institutions, including the Indian Institute of Technology Delhi, India, and the International Center of Theoretical Physics in Trieste, Italy. He has also supervised several M.S. theses and Ph.D. theses at King Saud University, covering various topics in differential geometry.