Counting closed geodesics in globally hyperbolic maximal compact AdS 3-manifolds

Abstract

We propose a definition for the length of closed geodesics in a globally hyperbolic maximal compact (GHMC) Anti-De Sitter manifold. We then prove that the number of closed geodesics of length less than R grows exponentially fast with R and the exponential growth rate is related to the critical exponent associated to the two hyperbolic surfaces coming from Mess parametrization. We get an equivalent of three results for quasi-Fuchsian manifolds in the GHMC setting: Bowen’s rigidity theorem of critical exponent, Sanders’ isolation theorem and McMullen’s examples lightening the behaviour of this exponent when the surfaces range over Teichmuller space.