A classification of left-invariant Lorentzian metrics on some nilpotent Lie groups

Abstract

It has been known that there exist exactly three left-invariant Lorentzian metrics up to scaling and automorphisms on the three dimensional Heisenberg group. In this paper, we classify left-invariant Lorentzian metrics on the direct product of three dimensional Heisenberg group and the Euclidean space of dimension $n-3$ with $n \geq 4$, and prove that there exist exactly six such metrics on this Lie group up to scaling and automorphisms. Moreover we show that only one of them is flat, and the other five metrics are Ricci solitons but not Einstein. We also characterize this flat metric as the unique closed orbit, where the equivalence class of each left-invariant metric can be identified with an orbit of a certain group action on some symmetric space.