\documentclass[reqno]{amsart} \usepackage{hyperref} \AtBeginDocument{{\noindent\small \emph{Electronic Journal of Differential Equations}, Vol. 2018 (2018), No. 80, pp. 1--14.\newline ISSN: 1072-6691. URL: http://ejde.math.txstate.edu or http://ejde.math.unt.edu} \thanks{\copyright 2018 Texas State University.} \vspace{8mm}} \begin{document} \title[\hfilneg EJDE-2018/80\hfil Solutions to the maximal equation] {Solutions to the maximal spacelike hypersurface equation in generalized Robertson-Walker spacetimes} \author[H. F. de Lima, F. R. dos Santos, J. G. Ara\'ujo\hfil EJDE-2018/80\hfilneg] {Henrique F. de Lima, F\'abio R. dos Santos, Jogli G. Ara\'ujo} \address{Henrique F. de Lima \newline Departamento de Matem\'atica, Universidade Federal de Campina Grande, 58429-970 Campina Grande, Para\'iba, Brazil} \email{henrique@mat.ufcg.edu.br} \address{F\'abio R. dos Santos \newline Departamento de Matem\'atica, Universidade Federal de Campina Grande, 58429-970 Campina Grande, Para\'iba, Brazil} \email{fabio@mat.ufcg.edu.br} \address{Jogli G. Ara\'ujo \newline Departamento de Matem\'atica, Universidade Federal de Campina Grande, 58429-970 Campina Grande, Para\'iba, Brazil} \email{jogli@mat.ufcg.edu.br} \dedicatory{Communicated by Giovanni Molica Bisci} \thanks{Submitted August 12, 2017. Published March 20, 2018.} \subjclass[2010]{53C42, 53B30, 53C50, 53Z05, 83C99} \keywords{Generalized Robertson-Walker spacetimes; timelike convergence ; \hfill\break\indent maximal spacelike hypersurfaces; entire graphs; maximal spacelike hypersurface equation} \begin{abstract} We apply some generalized maximum principles for establishing uniqueness and nonexistence results concerning maximal spacelike hypersurfaces immersed in a generalized Robertson-Walker (GRW) spacetime, which is supposed to obey the so-called timelike convergence condition (TCC). As application, we study the uniqueness and nonexistence of entire solutions of a suitable maximal spacelike hypersurface equation in GRW spacetimes obeying the TCC. \end{abstract} \maketitle \numberwithin{equation}{section} \newtheorem{theorem}{Theorem}[section] \newtheorem{lemma}[theorem]{Lemma} \newtheorem{remark}[theorem]{Remark} \newtheorem{corollary}[theorem]{Corollary} \allowdisplaybreaks \section{Introduction} In the previous decades, the study of spacelike hypersurfaces immersed in a Lorentz manifold has been of substantial interest from both physical and mathematical points of view. For instance, it was pointed out by Marsden and Tipler \cite{Marsdan:78} and Stumbles \cite{Stumbles:80} that spacelike hypersurfaces with constant mean curvature in a spacetime play an important role in General Relativity, since they can be used as initial hypersurfaces where the constraint equations can be split into a linear system and a nonlinear elliptic equation. From a mathematical point of view, spacelike hypersurfaces are also interesting because of their Bernstein-type properties. One can truly say that the first remarkable results in this branch were the rigidity theorems of Calabi \cite{Calabi:70} and Cheng and Yau \cite{Cheng:76}, who showed (the former for $n\leq 4$, and the latter for general $n$) that the only maximal (that is, with zero mean curvature) complete spacelike hypersurfaces of the Lorentz-Minkowski space $\mathbb{L}^{n+1}$ are the spacelike hyperplanes. However, in the case that the mean curvature is a positive constant, Treibergs \cite{Treibergs:82} astonishingly showed that there are many entire solutions of the corresponding constant mean curvature equation in $\mathbb{L}^{n+1}$, which he was able to classify by their projective boundary values at infinity. Later on, Ishihara~\cite{Ishihara:88} showed that the only complete maximal spacelike hypersurfaces immersed in a Lorentz manifold with nonnegative constant curvature are the totally geodesic ones. For the case of ambient spacetimes with negative constant curvature, he obtained a sharp estimate for the norm of the second fundamental form of a maximal spacelike hypersurface. In \cite{Camargo:10}, the first author jointly with Camargo have obtained rigidity results for complete maximal spacelike hypersurfaces in the anti-de Sitter space, imposing suitable conditions on both the norm of the second fundamental form and a certain height function naturally attached to these hypersurfaces. In this article, we are interested in the study of complete maximal spacelike hypersurfaces immersed in generalized Robertson-Walker (GRW) spacetimes. By GRW spacetimes, we mean Lorentzian warped products $-I\times_fM^n$ with Riemannian fibre $M^n$ and warping function $f$. In particular, when the Riemannian fibre $M^n$ has constant sectional curvature then $-I\times_fM^n$ is classically called a Robertson-Walker (RW) spacetime (for the details, see Section~\ref{sec:preliminaries}). Many authors have approached problems in this subject. We may cite the works \cite{Romero:14,CaballeroRomeroRubio:101,CaballeroRomeroRubio:102, CaballeroRomeroRubio:103,RomeroRubio:10,Romero:13.1,Romero:14B}, where Romero et al.\ obtained rigidity and uniqueness results for the spacelike slices and complete maximal surfaces immersed in a GRW spacetime obeying either the {\em timelike convergence condition} or the {\em null convergence condition}. Let us recall that a spacetime obeys the timelike (null) convergence condition if its Ricci curvature is nonnegative on timelike (null or lightlike) directions. Related to the compact case, Al\'{\i}as, Romero and S\'anchez \cite{Alias:95} proved that in a GRW spacetime satisfying the timelike convergence condition, every compact spacelike hypersurface of constant mean curvature must be totally umbilical. In this setting, they also showed how their result solve a certain Bernstein-type problem. Later on, Al\'{\i}as and Colares~\cite{Alias:07} studied the problem of uniqueness for compact spacelike hypersurfaces immersed with constant higher order mean curvature in GRW spacetimes. In order to establish one of their main results (cf. \cite[Theorem 9.2]{Alias:07}), they supposed that the ambient spacetime obeys a new notion of convergence condition, the so-called {\em strong null convergence condition} which corresponds to a suitable restriction on the sectional curvature of the Riemannian fibre of the GRW spacetime. Here, we deal with complete noncompact maximal spacelike hypersurfaces immersed in a GRW spacetime. In this setting, by assuming that the ambient spacetime obeys the timelike convergence condition (TCC), we apply some generalized maximum principles in order to establish uniqueness and nonexistence results concerning these hypersurfaces (see Theorems \ref{thm1}, \ref{thm2} and \ref{thm3}, and Corollaries \ref{corA} and \ref{cor1}). As application, we study the uniqueness and nonexistence of entire solutions of a suitable maximal spacelike hypersurface equation in GRW spacetimes obeying the TCC (see Theorems \ref{thm1-G}, \ref{thm2-G} and \ref{thm3-G}). We point out that our uniqueness and nonexistence results can be regarded as extensions of several others appearing in the current literature, for instance, those ones in \cite{Aledo:17,CaballeroRomeroRubio:102,Camargo:10,deLima:13,Romero:13.1, Romero:14B,Rubio:14}. \section{Preliminaries}\label{sec:preliminaries} In this section, we introduce some basic notation and facts which will appear along the paper. \subsection{GRW spacetimes and spacelike hypersurfaces} Let $M^n$ be a connected, $n$-dimensional ($n\geq2$) oriented Riemannian manifold, $I\subseteq\mathbb R$ a $1$-dimensional manifold (either a circle or an open interval of $\mathbb R$), and $f:I\to\mathbb R$ a positive smooth function. In the product differentiable manifold $\overline M^{n+1}=I\times M^n$, let $\pi_I$ and $\pi_M$ denote the projections onto the factors $I$ and $M^n$, respectively. A particular class of Lorentzian manifolds is the one obtained by furnishing $\overline M^{n+1}$ with the metric $$ \langle v,w\rangle_p=-\langle(\pi_I)_*v,(\pi_I)_*w\rangle +\left(f\circ\pi_I\right)(p)^2\langle(\pi_M)_*v,(\pi_M)_*w\rangle, $$ for all $p\in\overline M^{n+1}$ and all $v,w\in T_p\overline M$. Following the terminology introduced in~\cite{Alias:95}, such a space is called a {\em generalized Robertson-Walker} (GRW) spacetime, $f$ is known as the warping function and we shall write $\overline M^{n+1}=-I\times_fM^n$ to denote it. In particular, when the Riemannian fibre $M^n$ has constant sectional curvature, then $-I\times_fM^n$ is classically called a {\em Robertson-Walker} (RW) spacetime, and it is a spatially homogeneous spacetime (cf.~\cite{O'Neill:83}). As it was observed in~\cite{Alias:02}, we note that spatial homogeneity, which is reasonable as a first approximation of the large scale structure of the universe, may not be realistic when one considers a more accurate scale. For that reason, GRW spacetimes could be suitable spacetimes to model universes with inhomogeneous spacelike geometry. Besides, small deformations of the metric on the fiber of RW spacetimes fit into the class of GRW spacetimes (see, for instance, \cite{Hawking:73} and \cite{Rainer:95}). We recall that a smooth immersion $\psi:\Sigma^n\to - I\times_f M^n$ of an $n$-dimensional connected manifold $\Sigma^n$ is said to be a {\em spacelike hypersurface} if the induced metric via $\psi$ is a Riemannian metric on $\Sigma^n$, which, as usual, is also denoted for $\langle\cdot,\cdot\rangle$. In that case, since $$ \partial_t=\left(\partial/\partial_t\right)_{(t,x)},\quad ,(t,x)\in- I\times_f M^n, $$ is a unitary timelike vector field globally defined on the ambient spacetime, then there exists a unique timelike unitary normal vector field $N$ globally defined on the spacelike hypersurface $\Sigma^n$ which is in the same time-orientation as $\partial_t$. By using the Cauchy-Schwarz inequality, we obtain \begin{equation}\label{eq:2.3}\langle N,\partial_t\rangle\leq-1<0\quad \text{on }\Sigma^n. \end{equation} We will refer to that normal vector field $N$ as the future-pointing Gauss map of the spacelike hypersurface $\Sigma^n$. For $t_0\in I$, we orient the (spacelike) {\em slice} $M_{t_0}^n=\{t_0\}\times M^n$ by using its unit normal vector field $\partial_t$. According to~\cite{Alias:95}, $M_{t_0}$ has constant mean curvature $H=\frac{f'}{f}(t_0)$ with respect to $\partial_t$. Let $\overline{\nabla}$ and $\nabla$ denote the Levi-Civita connections in $-I\times_f M^n$ and $\Sigma^n$, respectively. Then the Gauss and Weingarten formulas for the spacelike hypersurface $\psi:\Sigma^n\to-I\times_f M^n$ are given by \begin{gather}\label{eq:Gaussformula} \overline{\nabla}_XY=\nabla_XY-\langle AX,Y\rangle N,\\ \label{eq:Weingarten} AX=-\overline{\nabla}_XN, \end{gather} for every tangent vector fields $X,Y\in\mathfrak X(\Sigma)$, where $A:\mathfrak X(\Sigma)\to\mathfrak X(\Sigma)$ stands for the shape operator (or Weingarten endomorphism) of $\Sigma^n$ with respect to its future-pointing Gauss map $N$. As in \cite{O'Neill:83}, the curvature tensor $R$ of the spacelike hypersurface $\Sigma^n$ is given by $$ R(X,Y)Z=\nabla_{[X,Y]}Z-[\nabla_X,\nabla_Y]Z, $$ where $[\cdot ,\cdot]$ denotes the Lie bracket and $X, Y, Z\in \mathfrak X(\Sigma)$. A well-known fact is that the curvature tensor $R$ of the spacelike hypersurface $\Sigma^n$ can be described in terms of the shape operator $A$ and the curvature tensor $\overline{R}$ of the ambient spacetime $\overline{M}^{n+1}$ by the so-called Gauss equation given by \begin{equation}\label{eq:Gauss equation} R(X,Y)Z=(\overline{R}(X,Y)Z)^{\top}-\langle AX,Z\rangle AY+\langle AY,Z\rangle AX, \end{equation} for every tangent vector fields $X,Y,Z\in\mathfrak X(\Sigma)$, where $(\cdot)^{\top}$ denotes the tangential component of a vector field in $\mathfrak X(\overline{M})$ along $\Sigma^n$. \subsection{Height and support functions and the normal hyperbolic angle} We consider two particular functions naturally attached to a spacelike hypersurface $\Sigma^n$ immersed into a GRW spacetime $\overline M^{n+1}=-I\times_f M^n$, namely, the (vertical) {\em height function} $h=(\pi_{I})|_{\Sigma}$ and the {\em support function} $\langle N,\partial_t\rangle$, where we recall that $N$ denotes the future-pointing Gauss map of $\Sigma^n$. A simple computation shows that \begin{equation*}\label{eq:2.4} \overline{\nabla}\pi_{I}=-\langle\overline{\nabla}\pi_{I},\partial_t\rangle\partial_t=-\partial_t, \end{equation*} so that \begin{equation}\label{eq:grad} \nabla h=(\overline{\nabla}\pi_{I})^{\top}=-\partial_t^{\top} =-\partial_t-\langle N,\partial_t\rangle N. \end{equation} Therefore, \begin{equation}\label{eq:norm grad} |\nabla h|^2=\langle N,\partial_t\rangle^2-1, \end{equation} where $|\cdot|$ stands for the norm of a vector field on $\Sigma^n$. We define the {\em hyperbolic angle} $\theta$ of $\Sigma^n$ as being the smooth function $\theta:\Sigma^n\to[0,+\infty)$ given by \begin{equation}\label{eq:2.5} \cosh\theta=-\langle N,\partial_t\rangle\geq 1. \end{equation} Therefore, from \eqref{eq:norm grad} and \eqref{eq:2.5} we obtain \begin{equation}\label{eq:2.6} \sinh^2\theta=|\nabla h|^2. \end{equation} \subsection{Energy curvature conditions}\label{sec:3} We recall that a GRW spacetime $\overline{M}^{n+1}=-I\times_fM^n$ obeys the {\em null convergence condition} (NCC) when \begin{equation} {\rm \overline{Ric}}(Z,Z)\geq0, \end{equation} for all null vector field $Z\in\mathfrak{X}(\overline{M})$. From \cite[Corollary 7.43]{O'Neill:83} we have that \begin{equation}\label{eqaux:1} \begin{aligned} {\rm \overline{Ric}}(Z,W) &={\rm Ric}_M(Z^\ast,W\ast)+(n((\log f)')^2+(\log f)'') \langle Z,W\rangle \\ &\quad-(n-1)(\log f)''\langle Z,\partial_t\rangle\langle W,\partial_t\rangle, \end{aligned} \end{equation} where ${\rm Ric}_{M}$ denotes the Ricci tensor of $M$ and $Z^{\ast}=Z+\langle Z,\partial_{t}\rangle\partial_{t}$ stands for the projection of the vector field $Z$ onto $M^{n}$. Consequently, from \eqref{eqaux:1} we have that the NCC holds in $\overline{M}^{n+1}$ if, and only if, \begin{equation}\label{eq:3.2} {\rm Ric}_{M}\geq(n-1)\left(f^2(\log f)''\right)\langle\cdot ,\cdot\rangle_{M}. \end{equation} A more restrictive energy condition is the {\em timelike converge condition}, that is \begin{equation} {\rm \overline{Ric}}(Z,Z)\geq0, \end{equation} for all timelike vector field $Z\in\mathfrak{X}(\overline{M})$. Note that, by a continuity argument, It turns out that the TCC implies NCC. Moreover, it is not difficult check that $\overline{M}^{n+1}$ satisfies the TCC if, and only if, \eqref{eq:3.2} holds and $f''\leq0$. \section{Uniqueness and nonexistence results in GRW spacetimes}\label{sec:uniqueness} This section is devoted to present our main results which are concerning the uniqueness and nonexistence of spacelike hypersurfaces immersed in a GRW spacetime obeying the TCC. For this, we start quoting an extension of Hopf's theorem on a complete noncompact Riemannian manifold due to Yau \cite{Yau:76}. In what follows, $\mathcal{L}^{1}(\Sigma)$ denotes the space of Lebesgue integrable functions on $\Sigma^{n}$. \begin{lemma}\label{Yau} Let $\Sigma^n$ be an $n$-dimensional, complete Riemannian manifold and let $g:\Sigma^n\to\mathbb R$ be a smooth function. If $g$ is a subharmonic (or superharmonic) function with $|\nabla g|\in\mathcal L^1(\Sigma)$, then $g$ must actually be harmonic. \end{lemma} In what follows, a slab \begin{equation*}\label{eq:4.1} [t_1,t_2]\times M^n=\left\{(t,q)\in-I\times_f M^n:t_1\leq t\leq t_2\right\} \end{equation*} is called a {\em timelike bounded region}. Our first result is a sort of improvement to \cite[Theorem 4.6]{deLima:13}. \begin{theorem}\label{thm1} Let $\overline{M}^{n+1}=-I\times_{f}M^{n}$ be a GRW spacetime obeying the TCC. \begin{itemize} \item[(i)] The only complete maximal spacelike hypersurfaces $\Sigma^{n}$ contained in a timelike bounded region of $\overline{M}^{n+1}$, whose hyperbolic angle and second fundamental form are bounded, $f''(h)<0$ and with $|\nabla h|\in\mathcal{L}^{1}(\Sigma)$, are the totally geodesic slices of $\overline{M}^{n+1}$. \item[(ii)] there are not exist complete maximal spacelike hypersurfaces $\Sigma^{n}$ contained in a timelike bounded region of $\overline{M}^{n+1}$ having bounded hyperbolic angle and second fundamental form, $f'(h)\neq0$ and with $|\nabla h|\in\mathcal{L}^{1}(\Sigma)$. \end{itemize} \end{theorem} \begin{proof} From \cite[Proposition 3.1]{Latorre:02} we have \begin{equation}\label{eq:3.4} \begin{aligned} &\frac{1}{2}\Delta \sinh^2\theta \\ &\geq n\frac{f'(h)^2}{f(h)^2}+\langle A^2\nabla h, \nabla h\rangle-2\frac{f'(h)}{f(h)}\operatorname{Hess}(h)(\nabla h, \nabla h) \\ &\quad +\cosh^2\theta{\rm Ric}_{M}(N^{\ast},N^{\ast}) +2\frac{f'(h)}{f(h)}\cosh\theta\langle A\nabla h,\nabla h\rangle \\ &\quad +(2n+1)\frac{f'(h)^2}{f(h)^2}\sinh^2\theta-n\frac{f''(h)}{f(h)} \sinh^2\theta+(n+1)\frac{f'(h)^2}{f(h)^2}\sinh^{4}\theta\\ &\quad -n\frac{f''(h)}{f(h)}\sinh^{4}\theta. \end{aligned} \end{equation} On the other hand, it is not difficult to verify that \begin{gather}\label{eq:2.7} \nabla\cosh\theta=A(\nabla h)-\frac{f'(h)}{f(h)}\langle N, \partial_{t}\rangle\nabla h, \\ \label{eq:2.8} \sinh^2\theta =f(h)^2\langle N^{\ast},N^{\ast}\rangle_M. \end{gather} Using inequality \eqref{eq:3.2} and equation \eqref{eq:2.8}, from \eqref{eq:3.4} we have \begin{equation}\label{eq:3.5} \begin{aligned} \frac{1}{2}\Delta\sinh^2\theta &\geq 2\frac{f'(h)}{f(h)}(\cosh\theta\langle A\nabla h,\nabla h\rangle -\operatorname{Hess}(h)(\nabla h, \nabla h)) \\ &\quad+(n-1)\cosh^2\theta\sinh^2\theta(\log f)''(h) +(2n+1)\frac{f'(h)^2}{f(h)^2}\sinh^2\theta \\ &\quad -n\frac{f''(h)}{f(h)}\sinh^2\theta+(n+1) \frac{f'(h)^2}{f(h)^2}\sinh^{4}\theta-n\frac{f''(h)}{f(h)}\sinh^{4}\theta. \end{aligned} \end{equation} Also from equation \eqref{eq:2.7} we obtain \begin{equation}\label{eq:3.6} \begin{aligned} \cosh\theta\langle A(\nabla h),\nabla h\rangle-\operatorname{Hess}(h) (\nabla h,\nabla h) &= \cosh\theta\frac{f'(h)}{f(h)} \langle N,\partial_{t}\rangle|\nabla h|^2 \\ &= -\cosh^2\theta\sinh^2\theta\frac{f'(h)}{f(h)}. \end{aligned} \end{equation} Hence, inserting~\eqref{eq:3.6} into~\eqref{eq:3.5}, with a straightforward computation we obtain \begin{equation}\label{eq:3.3} \frac{1}{2}\Delta\sinh^2\theta \geq n\Big(\frac{f'(h)}{f(h)}\Big)^2\sinh^2\theta -n\frac{f''(h)}{f(h)}\sinh^{4}\theta. \end{equation} So, let us assume the situation of item (i). From inequality \eqref{eq:3.3} we obtain \begin{equation}\label{eq:4.9} \frac{1}{2}\Delta\sinh^2\theta\geq-n\frac{f''(h)}{f(h)}\sinh^{4}\theta. \end{equation} In particular, since we are supposing that $f''(h)<0$, from \eqref{eq:4.9} we conclude that $\sinh^2\theta$ is a subharmonic function on $\Sigma^{n}$. On the other hand, since we are supposing that $A$ and $\theta$ are bounded and that $\Sigma^n$ is contained in a timelike bounded region of $\overline{M}^{n+1}$, from~\eqref{eq:2.7} we have \begin{equation}\label{eq:4.7} |\nabla\sinh^2\theta|= 2\cosh\theta\Big|\Big(A+\frac{f'(h)}{f(h)} \cosh\theta I\Big)\nabla h\Big|\leq C|\nabla h|, \end{equation} for some positive constant $C$. Thus, since we are also assuming that $|\nabla h|\in\mathcal{L}^{1}(\Sigma)$, from \eqref{eq:4.7} we obtain that $|\nabla\sinh^2\theta|\in\mathcal{L}^{1}(\Sigma)$. Consequently, we can apply Lemma~\ref{Yau} to obtain that $\sinh^2\theta$ is, in fact, harmonic on $\Sigma^n$. Therefore, returning to \eqref{eq:4.9} and using once more the hypothesis $f''(h)<0$, we conclude that $\theta$ vanishes identically on $\Sigma^{n}$, that is, $\Sigma^{n}$ must be a totally geodesic slice of $\overline{M}^{n+1}$. Now, let us prove item (ii). For this, suppose by contradiction that there exists such a spacelike hypersurface $\Sigma^n$. From inequality~\eqref{eq:3.3}, we also have \begin{equation}\label{eq:4.8} \frac{1}{2}\Delta\sinh^2\theta\geq n\Big(\frac{f'(h)}{f(h)}\Big)^2 \sinh^2\theta\geq0. \end{equation} Thus, we can apply again Lemma~\ref{Yau} to conclude that $\sinh^2\theta$ is a harmonic function. So, returning to~\eqref{eq:3.3} we must be $\sinh^2\theta\equiv0$. Hence, using the identity~\eqref{eq:2.6}, we have that $\cosh^2\theta=1$ on $\Sigma^n$. Therefore, there exists $t_{0}\in I$ such that $\Sigma^{n}\subset M^{n}_{t_{0}}$ and, for completeness, $\Sigma^{n}$ is a totally geodesic slice with $f'(t_0)=0$ and we arrive to a contradiction. \end{proof} \begin{remark}\rm We recall that a spacetime $\overline{M}^{n+1}$ obeys the {\em ubiquitous energy condition} if its Ricci curvature satisfies $\overline{{\rm Ric}}(Z,Z)>0$, for all timelike vector field $Z\in\mathfrak{X}(\overline{M})$. This last energy condition is stronger than the TCC and roughly means a real presence of matter at any point of the spacetime. It is not difficult to verify that if $\overline{M}^{n+1}=-I\times_{f}M^{n}$ is a GRW spacetime obeying the ubiquitous energy condition then $f^{''}<0$. We observe that the open subset of the anti-de Sitter space $\mathbb H_1^{n+1}$ which is modeled by the GRW spacetime $-\left(-\pi/2,\pi/2\right)\times_{\cos t}\mathbb{H}^{n}$ (cf. Example $3$ in Section $4$ of~\cite{Montiel:99}), the so-called Einstein-de Sitter cosmological model $-(0,\infty)\times_{t^{2/3}}\mathbb{R}^{3}$ and certain big bang cosmological models (see, for instance, \cite[Chapter 12]{O'Neill:83}, Chapter $5$ of \cite{Beem:96} or \cite[Chapter 5]{Hawking:73}) are examples of GRW spacetimes obeying the ubiquitous energy condition. So, in this case, the hypothesis $f''(h)<0$ in Theorem~\ref{thm1} is automatically satisfied. \end{remark} It is worth to make a discussion on the meaning of our assumption in Theorem~\ref{thm1} concerning the integrability of $|\nabla h|$ on the spacelike hypersurface $\Sigma^n$ both from geometric and physical viewpoints. From the first viewpoint, it is a natural extension to the case in which the spacelike hypersurface is compact. On the other hand, some physical interpretation is now in order. According to \cite{Montiel:99}, \begin{equation}\label{eqaux:0} V=V(t,p)=f(t)\partial_{t} \end{equation} is a closed conformal vector field globally defined on a GRW spacetime $\overline{M}^{n+1}=-I\times_{f}M^{n}$. So, following the concepts of \cite{Sachs:77} (see also \cite{deLima:14,Latorre:02}), given a spacelike hypersurface $\Sigma^n$ immersed in $\overline{M}^{n+1}$ with future-pointing Gauss map $N$, we can write $V_{q}=e(q)N_{q}+V_{q}^{\top}$, for each $q\in\Sigma^n$, where $e(q)=-\langle V_{q},N_{q}\rangle>0$ and $V_{q}^{\top}$ are, respectively, the energy and the $n$-momentum that the instantaneous observer $N_{q}$ measures for $V_{q}$. Moreover, the quantity $\frac{1}{e(q)}V_q^\top$ is the relative velocity (and, hence, $\frac{1}{e(q)}|V_q^\top|$ is the relative speed) of $V_q$ with respect to $N_q$. Note that \begin{equation}\label{eqaux:A0} |V_q^\top|=\sqrt{-\langle V_q,V_q\rangle}\sinh\theta(q), \end{equation} where $\theta(q)$ is the hyperbolic angle between $V_q$ and $N_q$. Thus, from \eqref{eqaux:A0} we obtain \begin{equation}\label{eqaux:A} |V_q^\top|=e(q)\tanh\theta(q)\leq e(q). \end{equation} Furthermore, from \eqref{eq:grad} and \eqref{eqaux:0} we also have that \begin{equation}\label{eqaux:B} |V_q^\top|=f(h(q))|\nabla h(p)|. \end{equation} Consequently, assuming that $\Sigma^n$ is contained in a timelike bounded region of $\overline{M}^{n+1}$, from \eqref{eqaux:A} and \eqref{eqaux:B} we see that the integrability of $|\nabla h|$ can be regarded as been the $n$-momentum of $N$ having integrable norm on $\Sigma^n$ and, in particular, such condition is satisfied when $\Sigma^n$ has {\em finite total energy}, that is, $$ \int_{\Sigma}e(q)d\Sigma<+\infty. $$ So, from Theorem~\ref{thm1} we obtain the following result. \begin{corollary}\label{corA} Let $\overline{M}^{n+1}=-I\times_{f}M^{n}$ be a GRW spacetime obeying the TCC. \begin{itemize} \item[(i)] The only complete maximal spacelike hypersurfaces $\Sigma^{n}$ contained in a timelike bounded region of $\overline{M}^{n+1}$, whose hyperbolic angle and second fundamental form are bounded, $f''(h)<0$ and with finite total energy, are the totally geodesic slices of $\overline{M}^{n+1}$. \item[(ii)] there are not exist complete maximal spacelike hypersurfaces $\Sigma^{n}$ contained in a timelike bounded region of $\overline{M}^{n+1}$ having bounded hyperbolic angle and second fundamental form, $f'(h)\neq0$ and with finite total energy. \end{itemize} \end{corollary} In~\cite{Ishihara:88}, Ishihara proved that a $n$-dimensional complete maximal spacelike hypersurface immersed in the anti-de Sitter space $\mathbb H_1^{n+1}$ must have the squared norm of the second fundamental form bounded from above by $n$. Taking into account Ishihara's result, Theorem~\ref{thm1} allows us to obtain the following refinement of \cite[Theorem 1.2]{Camargo:10}. \begin{corollary}\label{cor1} The only complete maximal spacelike hypersurface $\Sigma^{n}$ contained in a timelike bounded region of $-(-\pi/2,\pi/2)\times_{\cos t}\mathbb{H}^{n}\subset\mathbb H_1^{n+1}$, whose hyperbolic angle is bounded and with $|\nabla h|\in\mathcal{L}^{1}(\Sigma)$, is the totally geodesic slice $\{0\}\times\mathbb{H}^{n}$. \end{corollary} A Riemannian manifold $\Sigma^n$ is said to be {\em stochastically complete} if, for some (and, hence, for any) $(x,t)\in\Sigma\times(0,+\infty)$, the heat kernel $p(x,y,t)$ of the Laplace-Beltrami operator $\Delta$ satisfies the conservation property \begin{equation}\label{integrability condition:A} \int_{\Sigma}p(x,y,t)d\mu(y)=1. \end{equation} From the probabilistic viewpoint, stochastically completeness is the property of a stochastic process to have infinite life time. For the Brownian motion on a manifold, the conservation property \eqref{integrability condition:A} means that the total probability of the particle to be found in the state space is constantly equal to one (cf.~\cite{Emery:89,Grigoryan:88,Grigoryan:99,Stroock:2000}). On the other hand, Pigola, Rigoli and Setti showed that stochastic completeness turns out to be equivalent to the validity of a weak form of the Omori-Yau maximum principle (see \cite[Theorem 1.1]{Pigola:03} or \cite[Theorem 3.1]{Pigola:05}), as is expressed below. \begin{lemma}\label{lemma:weak Omori-Yau} A Riemannian manifold $\Sigma^n$ is stochastically complete if, and only if, for every $g\in\mathcal{C}^2(\Sigma)$ satisfying $\sup_{\Sigma}g<+\infty$, there exists a sequence of points $\{p_{k}\}\subset\Sigma^{n}$ such that $$ \lim_{k\to\infty}g(p_{k})=\sup_{\Sigma}g\quad\text{and}\quad \limsup_{k\to\infty}\Delta g(p_{k})\leq0. $$ \end{lemma} Our next result is an extension of those in \cite{CaballeroRomeroRubio:102,Camargo:10,deLima:13,Romero:13.1,Romero:14B,Rubio:14} for the case that the maximal spacelike hypersurface is supposed to be stochastically complete. For this, we observe that the slices of a GRW spacetime which satisfies \eqref{eq:3.2} have Ricci curvature bounded from below and, consequently, they are stochastically complete. \begin{theorem}\label{thm2} Let $\overline{M}^{n+1}=-I\times_{f}M^{n}$ be a GRW spacetime obeying the TCC. \begin{itemize} \item[(i)] The only stochastically complete maximal spacelike hypersurfaces contained in timelike bounded region $\mathcal U\subset\overline{M}^{n+1}$, whose hyperbolic angle is bounded and such that $f''<0$ in $\mathcal U$, are the totally geodesic slices of $\overline{M}^{n+1}$. \item[(ii)] There are not exist stochastically complete maximal spacelike hypersurfaces contained in a timelike bounded region $\mathcal U\subset\overline{M}^{n+1}$, with bounded hyperbolic angle and such that $f'\neq0$ in $\mathcal U$. \end{itemize} \end{theorem} \begin{proof} Let us assume the situation of item (i). From \eqref{eq:4.9} we have that \begin{equation*} \frac{1}{2}\Delta\sinh^2\theta\geq-n\frac{f''(h)}{f(h)}\sinh^{4}\theta. \end{equation*} Consequently, since $\Sigma^{n}$ is contained in a timelike bounded region $\mathcal U\subset\overline{M}^{n+1}$ with $f''<0$ in $\mathcal U$, there exists a positive constant $C$ such that \begin{equation}\label{eq:5.2} \frac{1}{2}\Delta\sinh^2\theta\geq C\sinh^{4}\theta. \end{equation} On the other hand, since we are supposing that $\theta$ is bounded, we can apply Lemma~\ref{lemma:weak Omori-Yau} in order to obtain a sequence of points $\{p_{k}\}_{k\in\mathbb{N}}\subset\Sigma^{n}$ such that \begin{equation}\label{eq:5.3} 0\leq\sup_{\Sigma}\sinh^2\theta=\lim_{k\to\infty}\sinh^2\theta(p_{k})\quad \text{and}\quad\limsup_{k\to\infty}\Delta\sinh^2\theta(p_{k})\leq0 \end{equation} Considering \eqref{eq:5.3} into inequality~\eqref{eq:5.2}, we obtain \begin{equation}\label{eq:5.4} 0\geq\limsup_{k\to\infty}\Delta\sinh^2\theta(p_{k}) \geq C\sup_{M}\sinh^{4}\theta\geq0. \end{equation} Therefore, from \eqref{eq:5.4} we conclude that $\theta=0$ on $\Sigma^n$ and, hence, $\Sigma^{n}$ must be a totally geodesic slice of $\overline{M}^{n+1}$. Now, we consider the case of item (ii). Suppose, for contradiction, that there exists such a stochastically complete maximal hypersurface $\Sigma^{n}$. From \eqref{eq:4.9} we also have that \begin{equation*} \frac{1}{2}\Delta\sinh^2\theta\geq n\frac{f'(h)^2}{f(h)^2}\sinh^2\theta. \end{equation*} Thus, as in the previous item, there exists a positive constant $C$ such that \begin{equation}\label{eq:5.2B} \frac{1}{2}\Delta\sinh^2\theta\geq C\sinh^2\theta. \end{equation} On the other hand, as we are supposing that $\theta$ is bounded, from~\eqref{eq:2.6}, we can apply Lemma~\ref{lemma:weak Omori-Yau} to obtain the sequence of points $\{p_{k}\}_{k\in\mathbb{N}}\subset\Sigma^{n}$ such that \begin{equation}\label{eq:5.3B} 0\leq\sup_{\Sigma}\sinh^2\theta =\lim_{k\to\infty}\sinh^2\theta(p_{k})\quad\text{and}\quad \limsup_{k\to\infty}\Delta\sinh^2\theta(p_{k})\leq0. \end{equation} Now, applying~\eqref{eq:5.3B} into inequality~\eqref{eq:5.2B} we obtain \begin{equation*}%\label{eq:5.4} 0\geq\limsup_{k\to\infty}\Delta\sinh^2\theta(p_{k}) \geq 2C\sup_{M}\sinh^2\theta\geq0. \end{equation*} So, we conclude that $\sinh^2\theta\equiv0$. Using equation~\eqref{eq:2.6}, we have that $\cosh^2\theta=1$ on $\Sigma^n$. Therefore, there exists $t_{0}\in I$ such that with $f'(t_0)=0$ and $\Sigma^{n}\subset M^{n}_{t_{0}}$ and, hence, we arrive to a contradiction. \end{proof} According to the terminology due to Al\'ias and Colares \cite{Alias:07}, a GRW spacetime is said to obey the {\em strong null convergence condition} (SNCC) when the sectional curvature $K_M$ of its fiber $M^n$ satisfies the inequality \begin{equation}\label{eq:SNCC} K_M\geq\sup_I(f^2(\log f)''), \end{equation} It is not difficult to see that the SNCC implies in the NCC. Paraphrasing the definition of the SNCC, we say that a GRW spacetime obeys the {\em strong timelike convergence condition} (STCC) when \eqref{eq:SNCC} is satisfied and $f''\leq0$. Clearly all GRW spacetime which satisfies the STCC also satisfies the TCC. Consequently, taking into account the discussion made in Section 4.3 of~\cite{Hawking:73} concerning the physical interpretation of the TCC, we conclude that the assumption of the ambient GRW spacetime to obey the STCC can be regarded as a mathematical way to express that gravity, on average, attracts. To establish our next result, we quote the following consequence of the generalized maximum principle of Omori-Yau \cite{Omori:67,Yau:76} which was obtained by Akutagawa~\cite{Akutagawa:87}. \begin{lemma}\label{Akutagawa} Let $\Sigma^{n}$ denote an $n$-dimensional complete Riemannian manifold having Ricci curvature bounded from below. If $g\in\mathcal{C}^2(\Sigma)$ is nonnegative and satisfies $\Delta g\geq Cg^{\beta}$, for some real numbers $C>0$ and $\beta>1$, then $g\equiv0$. \end{lemma} We will apply the previous lemma to obtain an extension of several results in \cite{CaballeroRomeroRubio:102,Camargo:10,deLima:13,Romero:13.1, Romero:14B,Rubio:14} for the context of complete maximal spacelike hypersurfaces immersed in a GRW spacetime obeying the STCC. \begin{theorem}\label{thm3} Let $\overline{M}^{n+1}=-I\times_{f}M^{n}$ be a GRW spacetime obeying the STCC. The only complete maximal spacelike hypersurfaces contained in a timelike bounded region $\mathcal U\subset\overline{M}^{n+1}$ with $f''<0$ in $\mathcal U$ are the spacelike totally geodesic slices of $\overline{M}^{n+1}$. \end{theorem} \begin{proof} Firstly, to apply Lemma~\ref{Akutagawa}, we claim that the Ricci curvature of $\Sigma^n$ is bounded from below. Indeed, set $X\in \mathfrak{X}(\Sigma)$ and a local orthonormal frame $\{E_1,\cdots,E_n\}$ of $\mathfrak{X}(\Sigma)$. Then, since $\Sigma^n$ is maximal, it follows from \eqref{eq:Gauss equation} that the Ricci curvature ${\rm Ric}$ of $\Sigma^n$ is given by \begin{equation}\label{eq:Ricci} {\rm Ric}(X,X)=\sum_{i}\langle\overline{R}(X,E_i)X,E_i\rangle+|AX|^2 \geq\sum_{i}\langle\overline{R}(X,E_i)X,E_i\rangle. \end{equation} Consequently, from \eqref{eq:Ricci} we obtain that ${\rm Ric}(X,X)$ is bounded from below if, and only if, $\sum_{i}\langle\overline{R}(X,E_i)X,E_i\rangle$ is bounded from below. On the other hand, by using \cite[equation (33)]{Alias:07} (see also \cite[Proposition 7.42]{O'Neill:83}) and taking into account equation \eqref{eq:grad}, we obtain \begin{equation}\label{eq:curvature of spacetime ambient} \begin{aligned} \sum_i\langle\overline{R}(X,E_i)X,E_i\rangle &= \sum_i\langle R_M(X^*,E_i^*)X^*,E_i^*\rangle+(n-1)((\log f)'(h))^2|X|^2 \\ &\quad-(n-2)(\log f)''(h)\langle X,\nabla h\rangle^2-(\log f)''(h) |\nabla h|^2|X|^2. \end{aligned} \end{equation} where $R_M$ is the curvature tensor of $M^n$, $E_i^*=(\pi_M)_*(E_i)$ and $X^*=(\pi_M)_*(X)$. By computing the first parcel of the right side of \eqref{eq:curvature of spacetime ambient}, we have \begin{equation}\label{eq:curvature of spacetime ambient2} \begin{aligned} \sum_i\langle R_M(X^*,E_i^*)X^*,E_i^*\rangle &\geq \frac{1}{f^2(h)}((n-1)|X|^2+|\nabla h|^2|X|^2 \\ &\quad +(n-2)\langle X,\nabla h\rangle^2)\min_iK_M(X^*,E_i^*). \end{aligned} \end{equation} Thus, considering \eqref{eq:SNCC} into \eqref{eq:curvature of spacetime ambient2}, we obtain \begin{equation}\label{eq:sectional curvature} \begin{aligned} \sum_i\langle R_M(X^*,E_i^*)X^*,E_i^*\rangle &\geq((n-1)|X|^2+|\nabla h|^2|X|^2\\ &\quad +(n-2)\langle X,\nabla h\rangle^2)(\log f)''(h). \end{aligned} \end{equation} Substituting \eqref{eq:sectional curvature} in \eqref{eq:curvature of spacetime ambient}, we have \begin{equation}\label{ineq:Ricci} \sum_i\langle\overline{R}(X,E_i)X,E_i\rangle\geq(n-1)\frac{f''(h)}{f(h)}|X|^2. \end{equation} Hence, since $\Sigma^n$ is supposed to be contained into a timelike bounded region of $\overline{M}^{n+1}$, from \eqref{ineq:Ricci} we obtain that the Ricci curvature of $\Sigma^n$ is bounded from below. Moreover, in a similar way of that in the proof of Theorem~\ref{thm2}, we see that inequality \eqref{eq:5.2} still holds. Therefore, we can apply Lemma~\ref{Akutagawa} to conclude that $\theta$ vanishes identically on $\Sigma^n$ and, hence, $\Sigma^{n}$ must be a totally geodesic slice of $\overline{M}^{n+1}$. \end{proof} \section{Maximal spacelike hypersurface equation in GRW spacetimes}\label{sec:graphs} The goal of this section is to apply our previous uniqueness and nonexistence results on maximal hypersurfaces in order to study entire solutions of a suitable maximal hypersurface equation in GRW spacetimes obeying the TCC. For this, we will first recall some basic facts concerning entire graphs in GRW spacetimes. Let $\Omega\subseteq M^n$ be a connected domain of $M^n$. For every $u\in\mathcal{C}^{\infty}(\Omega)$ such that $|Du|_{M}