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The Jung theorem for spherical and hyperbolic spaces. (English) Zbl 0854.52002

Jung’s theorem is, in its simplest form, an inequality relating the diameter \(D\) and circumradius \(R\) of compact sets in \(\mathbb{R}^d\) by giving a lower bound for \(D/R\) which depends only on \(d\). The author has already extended this theorem in a previous paper to include additional inequalities involving the edge-lengths of inscribed simplexes.
In this paper, the theorem is further extended to spherical and hyperbolic spaces. As these spaces have a natural length scale, the corresponding inequalities are a little more complicated, involving trigonometric and hyperbolic functions respectively.
The author also investigates precisely which pairs \((R,D)\) are realizable as the circumradius and diameter respectively of a compact set in \(R^d\), \(H^d\), of \(S^d\). In the Euclidean and hyperbolic cases, and the “small-cap” spherical case with circumradius less than \(\pi/2\), the answers are unsurprising and given by the inequalities derived earlier.
However, in the “large-cap” spherical case, for spherical sets that do not fit into a single hemisphere, combinatorial considerations arise as well. It is clear that \(D \geq R\), and the bound \(D = R = \pi(1- 1/(2k+1))\) is actually attained by \(2k+1\) points equally spaced around \(S^1\) (and by a related construction in \(S^d\)). While the author does not make this explicit, it is easily seen (in the case \(d = 1\)) that for intermediate values of \(R\), \(D = R\) is not attained; so that the boundary of the set of realizable points must have infinitely many scallops in it. The author traps this boundary between the line \(D = R\) and a zigzag polygonal arc, whose vertices are alternately on and above \(D = R\).
Reviewer: R.Dawson (Halifax)

MSC:

52A35 Helly-type theorems and geometric transversal theory
52A55 Spherical and hyperbolic convexity
52A40 Inequalities and extremum problems involving convexity in convex geometry
51M10 Hyperbolic and elliptic geometries (general) and generalizations
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References:

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