Ahlfors-Regular Curves In Metric Spaces

We discuss 1-Ahlfors-regular connected sets in a general metric space and prove that such sets are `flat' on most scales and in most locations. Our result is quantitative, and when combined with work of I. Hahlomaa, gives a characterization of 1-Ahlfors regular subsets of 1-Ahlfors-regular curves in metric spaces. Our result is a generalization to the metric space setting of the Analyst's (Geometric) Traveling Salesman theorems of P. Jones, K. Okikiolu, and G. David and S. Semmes, and it can be stated in terms of average Menger curvature.Comment: 25 pages, No figures. revisions after referee comments. to appear in Annales Academae Scientiarum Fennicae Mathematic

Multiscale analysis of 1-rectifiable measures II: characterizations

A measure is 1-rectifiable if there is a countable union of finite length curves whose complement has zero measure. We characterize 1-rectifiable Radon measures $\mu$ in $n$-dimensional Euclidean space for all $n\geq 2$ in terms of positivity of the lower density and finiteness of a geometric square function, which loosely speaking, records in an $L^2$ gauge the extent to which $\mu$ admits approximate tangent lines, or has rapidly growing density ratios, along its support. In contrast with the classical theorems of Besicovitch, Morse and Randolph, and Moore, we do not assume an a priori relationship between $\mu$ and 1-dimensional Hausdorff measure. We also characterize purely 1-unrectifiable Radon measures, i.e. locally finite measures that give measure zero to every finite length curve. Characterizations of this form were originally conjectured to exist by P. Jones. Along the way, we develop an $L^2$ variant of P. Jones' traveling salesman construction, which is of independent interest.Comment: 47 pages, 4 figures (v3: added/updated figures, new Remarks 2.1, 4.6, 5.8, minor improvements, final version

An upper bound for the length of a Traveling Salesman path in the Heisenberg group

We show that a sufficient condition for a subset $E$ in the Heisenberg group (endowed with the Carnot-Carath\'{e}odory metric) to be contained in a rectifiable curve is that it satisfies a modified analogue of Peter Jones's geometric lemma. Our estimates improve on those of \cite{FFP}, by replacing the power $2$ of the Jones-$\beta$-number with any power $r<4$. This complements (in an open ended way) our work \cite{Li-Schul-beta-leq-length}, where we showed that such an estimate was necessary, but with $r=4$.Comment: 19 pages. No figures; V2 several (inconsequential) errors corrected. V3 minor changes. Accepted to Revista Matem\'atica Iberoamerican

The Analyst's traveling salesman theorem in graph inverse limits

We prove a version of Peter Jones' Analyst's traveling salesman theorem in a class of highly non-Euclidean metric spaces introduced by Laakso and generalized by Cheeger-Kleiner. These spaces are constructed as inverse limits of metric graphs, and include examples which are doubling and have a Poincare inequality. We show that a set in one of these spaces is contained in a rectifiable curve if and only if it is quantitatively "flat" at most locations and scales, where flatness is measured with respect to so-called monotone geodesics. This provides a first examination of quantitative rectifiability within these spaces.Comment: 38 page