MA4545: Applied Differential Geometry

Lecture 2: Regular Surfaces

2.1 Motivation

Roughly speaking, a regular surface in R3 is obtained by taking pieces of a plane deforming them, and
arranging them in such a way that the resulting figure has no sharp points, edges, or self-intersections and
so that it makes sense to speak of a tangent plane at points of the figure. The idea is to define a set that
is , in a certain sense, two-dimensional and that also is smooth enough so that the usual notions of calculus
can be extended to it.

2.2 Inverse Images of Regular Values

Definition 2.1 Let F : U ⊂ Rn → Rm be a differentiable map. To each p ∈ U we associate a linear map

dFp : Rn → Rm which is called the differential of F at p and is defined as follows. Let w ∈ Rn and let
α : (−ε, ε) → U be a differentiable curve such that α(0) = p, α0 (0) = w. By the chain rule, the curve
β = F ◦ α : (−ε, ε) → Rm is also differentiable. Then

dFp (w) = β 0 (0).

Definition 2.2 (see Fig. 2.1) A subset S ⊂ R3 is a regular surface if, for each p ∈ S, there exists a
neighborhood V in R3 and a map x : U → V ∩ S of an open set U ⊂ R2 onto V ∩ S ⊂ R3 such that

Figure 2.1: Regular suface

2-1
2-2 Lecture 2: Regular Surfaces

1. x is differentiable. This means that if we write

x(u, v) = (x(u, v), y(u, v), z(u, v)), (u, v) ∈ U,

the functions x(u, v), y(u, v), z(u, v) have continuous partial derivatives of all orders in U .
2. x is a homeomorphism. Since x is continuous by condition 1, this means that x has an inverse
x−1 : V ∩ S → U which is continuous.
3. (Regularity condition.) For each q ∈ U , the differential dxq : R2 → R3 is one-to-one.

Remark 2.3 The mapping x is called a parametrization or a system of (local) coordinates in (a neighborhood
of ) p. The neighborhood V ∩ S of p in S is called a coordinate neighborhood.

Remark 2.4 In contrast to our treatment of curves in Lecture Note 1, we have defined a surface as a subset
S of R3 , and not as a map. This is achieved by covering S with the traces of parametrizations which satisfy
conditions 1, 2, and 3.

Remark 2.5 Condition 1 is very natural if we expect to do some differentiations on S. The one-to-oneness
in condition 2 has the purpose of preventing self-intersections in regular surfaces. This is clearly necessary if
we speak about the tangent plane at a point p ∈ S. Finally, as we shall see later, condition 3 will guarantee
the existence of a “tangent plane” at all points of S.

Remark 2.6 To give condition 3 in a more familiar way, let us compute the matrix of the linear map dxq
in the canonical bases e1 = (1, 0), e2 = (0, 1) of R2 with coordinates (u, v) and f1 = (1, 0, 0), f2 = (0, 1, 0),
f3 = (0, 0, 1) of R3 with coordinates (x, y, z).

Let q = (u0 , v0 ). The vector e1 is tangent to the curve u → (u, v0 ) whose image under x is the curve

u → (x(u, v0 ), y(u, v0 ), z(u, v0 )).

The image curve (called the coordinate curve v = v0 ) lies on S and has at x(q) the tangent vector
 
∂x ∂x ∂y ∂z
= , , ,
∂u ∂u ∂u ∂u
Lecture 2: Regular Surfaces 2-3

where the derivatives are computed at (u0 , v0 ) and a vector is indicated by its components in the basis
{f1 , f2 , f3 }. By Definition 2.1,  
∂x ∂y ∂z ∂x
dxq (e1 ) = , , = .
∂u ∂u ∂u ∂u
Similarly, using the coordinate curve u = u0 , we obtain
 
∂x ∂y ∂z ∂x
dxq (e2 ) = , , = .
∂v ∂v ∂v ∂v

Then, the matrix of the linear map dxq in the referred basis is
 ∂x ∂x 
∂u ∂v
∂y ∂y 
dxq =  ∂u ∂v
.
∂z ∂z
∂u ∂v

Condition 3 may now be expressed by requiring the two column vectors of this matrix to be linearly indepen-
dent, that is ∂x ∂x
∂u ∧ ∂v 6= 0. It is equivalent to that one of the Jacobian determinants

∂x ∂x
∂(x, y) ∂u ∂v
∂(y, z) ∂(x, z)
= ∂y ∂y , ,
∂(u, v) ∂u ∂v ∂(u, v) ∂(u, v)

is different from zero at q.

Example 1. Let us show that the unit sphere

S 2 = {(x, y, z) ∈ R3 : x2 + y 2 + z 2 = 1}

is a regular surface.
Method 1: We first verify that the map x1 : U ⊂ R2 → R3 given by
p
x1 (x, y) = (x, y, 1 − (x2 + y 2 )), (x, y) ∈ U,

where R2 = {(x, y, z) ∈ R3 ; z = 0} and U = {(x, y) ∈ R2 ; x2 + y 2 < 1}, is a parametrization of S 2 . Observe

that x1 (U ) is the (open) part of S 2 above the xy plane.
p
Since x2 + y 2 < 1, the function 1 − (x2 + y 2 ) has continuous partial derivatives of all orders. Thus, x1 is
differentiable and condition 1 holds.
∂(x,y)
Condition 3 is easily verified, since ∂(u,v) ≡ 1.

To check condition 2, we observe that x1 is one-to-one and that x−1 1 is the restriction of the (continuous)
projection π(x, y, z) = (x, y) to the set x1 (U ). Thus, x−1
1 is continuous in x1 (U )
We shall now cover the whole sphere with similar parametriztions as follows.
p
x2 (x, y) =(x, y, − 1 − (x2 + y 2 ))
p
x3 (x, z) =(x, 1 − (x2 + z 2 ), z)
p
x4 (x, z) =(x, − 1 − (x2 + z 2 ), z)
p
x5 (y, z) =( 1 − (y 2 + z 2 ), y, z)
p
x6 (y, z) =(− 1 − (y 2 + z 2 ), y, z)

Obviously, they together with x1 cover S 2 completely and show that S 2 is a regular surface.
2-4 Lecture 2: Regular Surfaces

Method 2: Let V = {(θ, φ) : 0 < θ < π, 0 < φ < 2π} and let x : V → R3 be given by
x(θ, φ) = (sin θ cos φ, sin θ sin φ, cos θ).

Clearly, x(V ) ⊂ S 2 . We shall prove that x is a parametrization of S 2 . θ is usually called the colatitude and
φ the longtitude.
It is clearly that the functions sin θ cos φ, sin θ sin φ, cos θ have continuous partial differential derivatives of
all orders. Hence x is differentiable. So condition 1 holds.
Moreover, if the Jacobian derterminants
∂(x, y) ∂(y, z) ∂(x, z)
= cos θ sin θ, = sin2 θ cos φ, = − sin2 θ sin φ
∂(θ, φ) ∂(θ, φ) ∂(θ, φ)
vanish simultaneously, then
cos2 θ sin2 θ + sin4 θ cos2 φ + sin4 θ sin2 φ = sin2 θ = 0.
This does not happen in V , and so condition 3 holds.
Next, we observe that given (x, y, z) ∈ S 2 \C, where C is the semicircle
C = {(x, y, z) ∈ S 2 : y = 0, x ≥ 0},
θ is uniquely determined by θ = cos−1 z, since 0 < θ < π. By knowing θ, we find sin φ and cos φ from
x = sin θ cos φ and y = sin θ sin φ, and this determins φ uniquely, since 0 < φ < 2π. It follows that x has an
inverse x−1 . To complete the verification of condition 2, we should prove that x−1 is continuous, which can
be done by applying Proposition 2.13 later.
Finally, it is not hard to see that S 2 can be covered with the coordinate neighborhoods of two parametrizations
of this type.

Now, we shall present two propositions which will simplify the argument to decide whether a given subset
of R3 is a regular surface or not.
Lecture 2: Regular Surfaces 2-5

Proposition 2.7 If f : U → R is a differential function in an open set U of R2 , then the graph of f , i.e.,
the subset of R3 given by (x, y, f (x, y)) for (x, y) ∈ U is a regular surface.

Proof: It suffices to show that the map x : U → R3 given by

x(u, v) = (u, v, f (u, v))

is a parametrization of the graph whose coordinate neighborhood covers every point of the graph. Condition
∂(x,y)
1 is clearly satisfied, and condition 3 also offers no difficulty since ∂(u,v) ≡ 1. Finally, each point (x, y, z)
of the graph is the image under x of the unique point (u, v) = (x, y) ∈ U . x is therefore one-to-one, and
since x−1 is the restriction to the graph of f of the (continuous) projection of R3 onto the xy plane, x−1 is
continuous.
Before stating Propositin 2.10, we shall need a definition.

Definition 2.8 Given a differentiable map F : U ⊂ Rn → Rm defined in an open set U of Rn , we say that
p ∈ U is a critical point of F if the differential dFp : Rn → Rm is not a surjective (or onto) mapping. The
image F (p) ∈ Rm of a critical point is called a critical value of F . A point of Rm which is not a critical
value is called a regular value of F .

Lemma 2.9 Let f : U ⊂ R3 → R be a differential function. Then a ∈ f (U ) is a regular value, if and only
if fx , fy , and fz do not vanish simultaneously at any point in the inverse image

f −1 (a) = {(x, y, z) ∈ U : f (x, y, z) = a}.

Proof: dfp applied to the vector (1, 0, 0) is obtained by calculating the tangent vector at f (p) to the curve

x → f (x, y0 , z0 ).

It follows that
∂f
dfp (1, 0, 0) = (x0 , y0 , z0 ) = fx
∂x
2-6 Lecture 2: Regular Surfaces

and analogously that

dfp (0, 1, 0) = fy , dfp (0, 0, 1) = fz .
We conclude that the matrix of dfp in the basis (1, 0, 0), (0, 1, 0), (0, 0, 1) is given by

dfp = (fx , fy , fz ).

Note that the case that dfp is not surfective is equivalent to saying that fx = fy = fz = 0 at p. Hence the
lemma is proved.

Proposition 2.10 If f : U ⊂ R3 → R is a differentiable function and a ∈ f (U ) is a regular value of f ,

then f −1 (a) is a regular surface in R3 .

Proof: Let p = (x0 , y0 , z0 ) be a point of f −1 (a). Since a is a regular value of f , it is possible to assume, by
renaming the axes if necessary, that fz 6= 0 at p. We define a mapping F : U ⊂ R3 → R3 by

F (x, y, z) = (x, y, f (x, y, z)),

and we indicate by (u, v, t) the coordinates of a point in R3 where F takes its value, i.e., (u, v, t) = F (x, y, z).

The differential of F at p is given by  

1 0 0
dFp =  0 1 0 ,
fx fy fz
whence
det(dFp ) = fz 6= 0.

Now we need to apply the following inverse function theorem, whose proof can be found in Buck, Advanced
Calculus, pp. 285.

Theorem 2.11 (Inverse Function Theorem) Let F : U ⊂ Rn → Rn be a differentiable mapping and

suppose that at p ∈ U , the differential dFp : Rn → Rn is an isomorphism. Then there exists a neighborhood
V of p in U and a neighborhood W of F (p) in Rn such that F : V → W has a differentiable inverse
F −1 : W → V .
Lecture 2: Regular Surfaces 2-7

Therefore, there exist neighborhoods V of p and W of F (p) such that F : V → W is invertible and the
inverse F −1 : W → V is differentiable. It follows that the coordinate function of F −1 , i.e., the function
x = u, y = v, z = g(u, v, t), (u, v, t) ∈ W,
are differentiable. In particular, z = g(u, v, a) = h(x, y) is differentiable function defined in the projection of
V onto the xy plane. Since
F (f −1 (a) ∩ V ) = W ∩ {(u, v, t) : t = a},
we conclude that the graph of h is f −1 (a) ∩ V . By Proposition 2.7, f −1 (a) ∩ V is a coordinate neighborhood
of p. Therefore, every p ∈ f −1 (a) can be covered by a coordinate neighborhood, and so f −1 (a) is a regular
surface.
Example 1 (Revisited). Let us show that the unit sphere
S 2 = {(x, y, z) ∈ R3 : x2 + y 2 + z 2 = 1}
is a regular surface.
Method 3. In fact, it is the set f −1 (0) where
f (x, y, z) = x2 + y 2 + z 2 − 1
is a differentiable function and 0 is a regular value of f . This follows from the fact that the partial derivatives
fx = 2x, fy = 2y, fz = 2z vanish simultaneously only at the point (0, 0, 0), which does not belong to f −1 (0).
Then Proposition 2.10 is applied.

Figure 2.2: Torus

Example 2. The torus T is a “surface” generated by rotating a circle S 1 of radius r about a straight line
belonging to the plane of the circle and at a distance a > r away from the center of the circle. (see Fig. 2.2)
Solution. Let S 1 be the circle in the yz plane with its center in the point (0, a, 0). Then S 1 is given by
(y − a)2 + z 2 = r2 , and the points of the figure T obtained by rotating this circle about the z axis satisfy
the equation p
( x2 + y 2 − a)2 + z 2 = r2 .
2-8 Lecture 2: Regular Surfaces

Therefore, T is the inverse image of r2 by the function

p
f (x, y, z) = ( x2 + y 2 − a)2 + z 2 .
This function is differentiable for (x, y) 6= (0, 0), and since
p p
∂f ∂f 2y( x2 + y 2 − a) ∂f 2x( x2 + y 2 − a)
= 2z, = p , = p ,
∂z ∂y x2 + y 2 ∂x x2 + y 2
r2 is a regular value of f . It follows that the torus T is a regular surface.

Proposition 2.7 says that the graph of a differentiable function is a regular surface. The following proposition
provides a local converse of this, that is, any regular surface is locally the graph of a differentiable function.

Proposition 2.12 Let S ⊂ R3 be a regular surface and p ∈ S. Then there exists a neighborhood V of p in S
such that V is the graph of a differentiable function which has one of the following three forms: z = f (x, y),
y = g(x, z), x = h(y, z).

Proof: Let x : U ⊂ R2 → S be a parametrization of S in p, and write x(u, v) = (x(u, v), y(u, v), z(u, v)),
(u, v) ∈ U . By condition 3 of Definition 2.2, one of the Jacobian determinats
∂(x, y) ∂(y, z) ∂(z, x)
, ,
∂(u, v) ∂(u, v) ∂(u, v)
is not zero at x−1 (p) = q.
∂(x,y)
Suppose first that ∂(u,v) (q) 6= 0, and consider the map π ◦ x : U → R2 , where π is the projectiion π(x, y, z) =
(x, y). Then
π ◦ x(u, v) = (x(u, v), y(u, v)),
∂(x,y)
and since ∂(u,v) (q)6= 0, we can apply the inverse function theorem to guarantee the existence of neighbor-
hoods V1 of q, V2 of π ◦ x(q) such that π ◦ x maps V1 diffeomorphically onto V2 . Here, we call a differential
mapping F : V ⊂ Rn → W ⊂ Rn , where V and W are open sets, a diffeomorphism of V with W if F has a
differentiable inverse. It follows that π restricted to x(V1 ) = V is one-to-one and that there is a differentiable
inverse (π ◦ x)−1 : V2 → V1 . Observe that, since x is a homeomorphism (condition 2 in Definition 2.2), V is a
neighborhood of p in S. Now, if we compose the map (π ◦ x)−1 : V2 → V1 with the function (u, v) → z(u, v),
we find that V is the graph of the differentiable function z = z(u(x, y), v(x, y)) = f (x, y), and this settles
the first case.
The remaining cases can be treated in the same way, yielding x = h(y, z) and y = g(x, z).
The next proposition is already used in Example 1.
Lecture 2: Regular Surfaces 2-9

Proposition 2.13 Let p ∈ S be a point of a regular surface S and let x : U ⊂ R2 → R3 be a map with
p ∈ x(U ) ⊂ S such that condition 1 and 3 of Definition 2.2 hold. Assume that x is one-to-one. Then x−1
is continuous.

Proof: We begin by proceeding in a way similar to the proof of Proposition 2.12. Write x(u, v) =
(x(u, v), y(u, v), z(u, v)), (u, v) ∈ U , and let q ∈ U . By conditions 1 and 3, we can assume, interchang-
∂(x,y)
ing the coordinate axis if necessary, that ∂(u,v) (q) 6= 0. Let π : R3 → R2 be the projection π(x, y, z) = (x, y).
By the inverse function theorem, we obtain neighborhoods V1 of q in U and V2 of π ◦ x(q) in R2 such that
π ◦ x applies V1 diffeomorphically onto v2 .
Assume now that x is bijective. Then, restricted to x(V1 ), x−1 = (π ◦ x)−1 ◦ π. Thus x−1 , as a composition
of continuous maps, is continuous.
Example 3. The one-sheeted cone C, given by
p
z = x2 + y 2 , (x, y) ∈ R2 ,
is not a regular surface.
Solution. Before giving the solution, we first remark that we cannot conclude this from the fact alone that
the “natural” parametrization p
(x, y) → (x, y, x2 + y 2 )
is not differentiable, because there could be other parametrization satisfying Definition 2.2.
To show that this is not the case, we use Proposition 2.12. If C were a regular surface, it would be, in a
neighborhood of (0, 0, 0) ∈ C, the graph of a differentiable function having one of three forms: y = h(x, z),
x = g(y, z), z = f (x, y). The two first forms can be discarded by the simple fact that the projections of
C over the xz andpyz planes can not one-to-one.
p The last form would have to agree, in a neighborhood of
(0, 0, 0), with z = x2 + y 2 . Since z = x2 + y 2 is not differentiable at (0, 0), this is impossible.

2.3 Change of Parameters, Differentiable Functions on Surface

Proposition 2.14 (Change of Parameters) Let p be a point of a regular surface S, and let x : U ⊂
R2 → S, y : V ⊂ R2 → S be two parametrizations of S such that p ∈ x(U ) ∩ y(V ) = W . Then the “change
of coordinates” h = x−1 ◦ y : y−1 (W ) → x−1 (W ) is a diffeomorphism, that is, h is differentiable and has a
differentiable inverse h−1 .

The proof of Proposition is not required in this course, and makes essential use of the fact that the inverse
of a parametrization is continuous. One can find the proof in M. do Carmo’s book (pp. 73-74).

Remark 2.15 If x and y are given by

x(u, v) = (x(u, v), y(u, v), z(u, v)), (u, v) ∈ U
y(ξ, η) = (x(ξ, η), y(ξ, η), z(ξ, η)), (ξ, η) ∈ V
then the change of coordinates h, given by
u = u(ξ, η), v = v(ξ, η), (ξ, η) ∈ y−1 (W ),
has the property that the functions u and v have continuous partial derivatives of all orders, and the map h
can be inverted, yielding
ξ = ξ(u, v), η = η(u, v), (u, v) ∈ x−1 (W ),
2-10 Lecture 2: Regular Surfaces

where the functions ξ and η also have partial derivatives of all orders. Since
∂(u, v) ∂(ξ, η)
· = 1,
∂(ξ, η) ∂(u, v)
this implies that the Jacobian determinants of both h and h−1 are nonzero everywhere.

We shall now give an explicit definition ofwhat is meant by a differentiable function on a regular surface.

Definition 2.16 Let f : V ⊂ S → R be a function defined in an open subset V of a regular surface S. Then
f is said to be differentiable at p ∈ V , if for some parametrization x : U ⊂ R2 → S with p ∈ x(U ) ⊂ V , the
composition f ◦ x : U ⊂ R2 → R is differentiable at x−1 (p). f is differentiable in V if it is differentiable at
all points of V .

It follows immediately from Proposition 2.14 that the definition given here does not depend on the choice of
the parametrization x.

Remark 2.17 We shall frequently make the notational abuse of indicating f and f ◦ x by the same symbol
f (u, v), and say that f (u, v) is the expression of f in the system of coordinates x. From now on, abuse of
language of this type will be used without further comments.

Example 4. Let S be a regular surface and V ⊂ R3 be an open set such that S ⊂ V . Let f : V ⊂ R3 → R
be a differentiable function. Then the restriction of f to S is a differentiable function on S. In fact, for
any p ∈ S and any parametrization x : U ⊂ R2 → S in p, the function f ◦ x : U → R is differentiable. In
particular, the following are differentiable functions:

1. The height function relative to a unit vector v ∈ R3 , h : S → R, given by h(p) = p · v, p ∈ S, where

the dot denotes the usual inner product in R3 , h(p) is the height of p ∈ S relative to a plane normal
to v and passing through the origin of R3 .
2. The square of the distance from a fixed point p0 ∈ R3 , f (p) = |p − p0 |2 , p ∈ S. The need for taking
the square comes from the fact that the distance |p − p0 | is not differentiable at p = p0 .

The definition of differentiablility can be easily extended to mappings between surfaces.

Definition 2.18 A continuous map ϕ : V1 ⊂ S1 → S2 of an open set V1 of a regular surface S1 to a regular

surface S2 is said to be differentiable at p ∈ V1 , if given parametrizations
x1 : U1 ⊂ R2 → S1 x2 : U2 ⊂ R2 → S2 ,
with p ∈ x1 (U1 ) and ϕ(x1 (U1 )) ⊂ x2 (U2 ), the map
x−1
2 ◦ ϕ ◦ x1 : U1 → U2

is differentiable at q = x−1
1 (p).

In other words, ϕ is differentiable if when expressed in local coordinates as ϕ(u1 , v1 ) = (ϕ1 (u1 , v1 ), ϕ2 (u1 , v1 ),
the functions ϕ1 and ϕ2 have continuous partial derivatives of all orders.
A final comment should now be made on our definition of surface. In Definition 2.2, we define a regular
surface as a subset of R3 . If we want to consider global, as well as local, properties of surfaces, this is the
correct setting. In fact, we can also define surface as a parametrized surface, as in the case of curves, as long
as local properties are considered.
In any case, the notion of parametrized surface is sometimes useful and should be included here.
Lecture 2: Regular Surfaces 2-11

Definition 2.19 (Parametrized Surface) A parametrized surface x : U ⊂ R2 → R3 is a differentiable

map x from an open set U ⊂ R2 into R3 . The set x(U ) ⊂ R3 is called the trace of x. x is regular if the
differential dxq : R2 → R3 is one-to-one for all q ∈ U ( i.e., ∂x/∂u ∧ ∂x/∂v 6= 0 for all q ∈ U ). A point
p ∈ U where dxp is not one-to-one is called a singular point of x.

Observe that a prametrized surfac, even when regular, may have self-intersection in its trace. But locally,
we have the following proposition.

Proposition 2.20 Let x : U ⊂ R2 → R3 be a regular parametrized surface and let q ∈ U . Then there exists
a neighborhood V of q in R2 such that x(V ) is a regular surface.

Proof: Condition 1 and Condition 3 are obvious. For condition 2, this is again a consequence of the inverse
function theorem. Write
x(u, v) = (x(u, v), y(u, v), z(u, v)).

By regularity, we can assume that (∂(x, y)/∂(u, v))(q) 6= 0. Define a map F : U × R → R3 by

F (u, v, t) = (x(u, v), y(u, v), z(u, v) + t), (u, v) ∈ U, t ∈ R.

Then
∂(x, y)
det(dFq ) = (q) 6= 0.
∂(u, v)

By the inverse function theorem, there exist neighborhoods W1 of q and W2 of F (q) such that F : W1 → W2
is a diffeomorphism. Set V = W1 ∩ (U × {t = 0}) and observe that the restriction F |V = x|V . Thus x(V ) is
diffeomorphic to V , and hence a regular surface.
2-12 Lecture 2: Regular Surfaces

2.4 Tangent Plane; Differential of a Map

Definition 2.21 We call v a tangent vector to S at a point p ∈ S, if v = α0 (0) of a differentiable

parametrized curve α : (−ε, ε) → S with α(0) = p.

Proposition 2.22 Let x : U ⊂ R2 → S be a parametrization of a regular surface S and let q ∈ U . The

vector subspace of dimension 2,
dxq (R2 ) ⊂ R3 ,
coincides with the set of tangent vectors to S at x(q).

Proof: Let w be a tangent vector at x(q), that is, let w = α0 (0), where α : (−ε, ε) → x(U ) ⊂ S is
differentiable and α(0) = x(q). Hence, the curve β = x−1 ◦ α : (−ε, ε) → U is differentiable. By Definition
2.1, we have dxq (β 0 (0)) = w. Hence, w ∈ dxq (R2 ).
On the other hand, let w = dxq (v), where v ∈ R2 . It is clear that v is the velocity vector of the curve
γ : (−ε, ε) → U given by
γ(t) = tv + q, t ∈ (−ε, ε).
By Definition 2.1, w = α0 (0), where α = x ◦ γ. This shows that w is a tangent vector.
By the above proposition, the plane dxq (R2 ), which passes through x(p) = q, does not depend on the
parametrization x. So we have the following definition.

Definition 2.23 We call plane dxq (R2 ) the tangent plane to S at p and will be denoted by Tp (S).

Remark 2.24 The choice of the parametrization x determines a basis {(∂x/∂u)(q), (∂x/∂v)(q)} of Tp (S),
called the basis associated to x. It is convenient to write
∂x ∂x
xu = and xv = .
∂u ∂v
Moreover, the coordinates of a vector w ∈ Tp (S) in the basis associated to a parametrization x are determined
as follows. w is the velocity vector α0 (0) of a curve α = x ◦ β, where β : (−ε, ε) → U is given by β(t) =
Lecture 2: Regular Surfaces 2-13

(u(t), v(t)), with β(0) = q = x−1 (p). Thus,

d d
α0 (0) = (x ◦ β)(0) = x(u(t), v(t))(0) = xu (q)u0 (0) + xv (q)v 0 (0) = w.
dt dt

Hence, in the basis {xu (q), xv (q)}, w has coordinates (u0 (0), v 0 (0)), where (u(t), v(t)) is the expression of a
curve in the parametrization x, whose velocity vector at t = 0 is w.

Next, we will define the differential of a (differentiable) map between surfaces.

Definition 2.25 Let S1 and S2 be two regular surfaces and let ϕ : V ⊂ S1 → S2 be a differentiable mapping
of an open set V of S1 into S2 . If p ∈ V , every tangent vector w ∈ Tp (S1 ) is the velocity vector α0 (0)
of a differentiable parametrized curve α : (−ε, ε) → V with α(0) = p. The curve β = ϕ ◦ α is such that
β(0) = ϕ(p), and therefore β 0 (0) ∈ Tϕ(p) (S2 ). The map dϕp : Tp (S1 ) → Tϕ(p) (S2 ) defined by dϕp (w) = β 0 (0)
is called the differential of ϕ at p ∈ S1 .

Proposition 2.26 Given w ∈ Tp (S1 ), the vector β 0 (0) does not depend on the choice of α. The differential
dϕp is linear.

Proof: Let x(u, v) and x̃(ũ, ṽ) be parametrizations in neighborhoods of p and ϕ(p), respectively. Suppose
ϕ is expressed in these coordinates by

ϕ(u, v) = (ϕ1 (u, v), ϕ2 (u, v))

and that α is expressed by

α(t) = (u(t), v(t)), t ∈ (−ε, ε).

Then
β(t) = (ϕ1 (u(t), v(t)), ϕ2 (u(t), v(t))),

and the expression of β 0 (0) in the basis {x̃ũ , x̃ṽ } is

 
0 ∂ϕ1 0 ∂ϕ1 0 ∂ϕ2 0 ∂ϕ2 0
β (0) = u (0) + v (0), u (0) + v (0) .
∂u ∂v ∂u ∂v

The relation above shows that β 0 (0) depends only on the map ϕ and the coordinates (u0 (0), v 0 (0) of w in the
basis {xu , xv }. β 0 (0) is therefore independent of α. Moreover, the relation shows that
 ∂ϕ1 ∂ϕ1
 0 
u (0)
β 0 (0) = dϕp (w) = ∂u ∂v .
∂ϕ2
∂u
∂ϕ2
∂v
v 0 (0)

So dϕp is a linear mapping of Tp (S1 ) into Tϕ(p) (S2 ) whose matrix in the bases {xu , xv } of Tp (S1 ) and {x̃ũ , x̃ṽ }
of Tϕ(p) (S2 ) is just the matrix given above.
Example 5. Let v ∈ R3 be a unit vector and let h : S → R, h(p) = v · p, p ∈ S, be the height function
defined in Example 4. To compute dhp (w), w ∈ Tp (S), choose a differentiable curve α : (−ε, ε) → S with
α(0) = p, α0 (0) = w. Since h(α(t)) = α(t) · v, we obtain

d
dhp (w) = h(α(t))|t=0 = α0 (0) · v = w · v.
dt
2-14 Lecture 2: Regular Surfaces

2.5 The First Fundamental Form; Area

The natural inner product of R3 ⊃ S induces on each tangent plane Tp (S) of a regular surface S an
inner product, to be denoted by <, >p : If w1 , w2 ∈ Tp (S) ⊂ R3 , then < w1 , w2 >p is equal to the inner
product of w1 and w2 as vectors in R3 . To this inner product, which is a symmetric bilinear form (i.e.,
< w1 , w2 >p =< w2 , w1 >p and < w1 , w2 >p is linear in both w1 and w2 ), there corresponds a quadratic
form Ip : Tp (S) → R given by
Ip (w) =< w, w >p = |w|2 ≥ 0. (2.1)

Definition 2.27 The quadratic form Ip on Tp (S), defined by (2.1), is called the first fundamental form of
the regular surface S ⊂ R3 at p ∈ S.

The first fundamental form is merely the expression of how the surface S inherits the natural inner product
of R3 .

Remark 2.28 We shall now express the first fundamental form in the basis {xu , xv } associated to a parametriza-
tion x(u, v) at p. Since a tangent vector w ∈ Tp (S) is the tangent vector to a prametrized curve α(t) =
x(u(t), v(t)), t ∈ (−ε, ε), with p = α(0) = x(u0 , v0 ), we obtain

Ip (w) = < α0 (0), α0 (0) >p

= < xu u0 + xv v 0 , xu u0 + xv v 0 >p
=E(u0 )2 + 2F u0 v 0 + G(v 0 )2 ,

where the values of the functions involved are computed for t = 0, and

E =< xu , xu >p , F =< xu , xv >p , G =< xv , xv >p

are the coefficients of the first fundamental form in the basis {xu , xv } of Tp (S).

By letting p run in the coordinate neighborhood correpsonding to x(u, v), we obtain functions E(u, v),
F (u, v), G(u, v) which are differentiable in that neighborhood.

Remark 2.29 From now on, we shall drop the subscript p in the indication of the inner product <, >p
or the quadratic form Ip , when it is clear from the context which point we are referring to. It will also be
convenient to denote the natural inner product of R3 by the same symbol <, > rather than the previous dot.

Example 6. A coordinate system for a plane P ⊂ R3 passing through p0 = (x0 , y0 , z0 ) and containing the
orthonormal vectors w0 = (a1 , a2 , a3 ), w2 = (b1 , b2 , b3 ) is given as follows:

x(u, v) = p0 + uw1 + vw2 , (u, v) ∈ R2 .

To compute the first fundamental form for an arbitrary point of P , we observe that xu = w1 , xv = w2 . Since
w1 and w2 are unit orthogonal vectors,

E = 1, F = 0, G = 1.

Thus, if w is a tangent vector to the sphere at the point x(u, v), given in the basis associated to x(u, v) by

w = axu + bxv ,

then the square of the length of w is given by

|w| = I(w) = a2 + b2 .
Lecture 2: Regular Surfaces 2-15

Example 7. The right cylinder over the circle x2 + y 2 = 1 admits the parametrization x : U → R3 , where

x(u, v) = (cos u, sin u, v), U = {(u, v) ∈ R2 : 0 < u < 2π, −∞ < v < ∞}.

To compute the first fundamental form, we notice that

xu = (− sin u, cos u, 0), xv = (0, 0, 1),

and therefore
E = sin2 u + cos2 u = 1, F = 0, G = 1.
Thus, if w is a tangent vector to the sphere at the point x(u, v), given in the basis associated to x(u, v) by

w = axu + bxv ,

then the square of the length of w is given by

|w| = I(w) = a2 + b2 .

We remark that, although the cylinder and the plane are distinct surfaces, we obtain the same result in both
cases.
Example 8. We shall compute the first fundamental form of a sphere at a point of the coordinate neigh-
borhood given by the parametrization (see Method 2 for Example 1)

x(θ, ϕ) = (sin θ cos ϕ, sin θ sin ϕ, cos θ).

First, observe that

xθ = (cos θ cos ϕ, cos θ sin ϕ, − sin θ), xϕ = (− sin θ sin ϕ, sin θ cos ϕ, 0).

Hence
E = 1, F = 0, G = sin2 θ.
Thus, if w is a tangent vector to the sphere at the point x(θ, ϕ), given in the basis associated to x(θ, ϕ) by

w = axθ + bxϕ ,

then the square of the length of w is given by

|w| = I(w) = a2 + b2 sin2 θ.

As we mentioned before, the importance of the first fundamental form I comes from the fact that by knowing
I we can treat metric questions on a regular surface without further references to the ambient space R3 .
Thus, the are length s of a parametrized curve α : I → S is given by
Z t Z tp
s(t) = |α0 (t)|dt = I(α0 (t))dt.
0 0

In particular, if α(t) = x(u(t), v(t)) is contained in a coordinate neighborhood corresponding to the parametriza-
tion x(u, v), we can compute the arc length of α between 0 and t by
Z tp
s(t) = E(u0 )2 + 2F u0 v 0 + G(v 0 )2 dt.
0
2-16 Lecture 2: Regular Surfaces

Also, the angle θ under which two parametrized regular curves α : I → S, β : I → S intersect at t = t0 is
given by
< α0 (t0 ), β 0 (t0 ) >
cos θ = .
|α0 (t0 )||β 0 (t0 )|
In particular, the angle ϕ of the coordinate curves of a parametrization x(u, v) is
< xu , xv > F
cos ϕ = =√ .
|xu ||xv | EG
It follows that the coordinate curves of a parametrization are orthogonal if and only if F (u, v) = 0 for all
(u, v). Such a parametrization is called an orthogonal parametrization.

Another metric questoin that can be treated by the first fundamental form is the computation (or definition)
of the area of a bounded region of a regular surface S. Let Q be a compact region in R2 that is contained
in a coordinate neighborhood x : U → S. Then x(Q) = R is a bounded region in S.
The function |xu ∧ xv |, defined in U , measures the area of the parallelogram generated by the vectors xu
and xv . We first show that the integral Z
|xu ∧ xv |dudv
Q

does not depend on the parametrization x.

In fact, let x̃ : Ũ ⊂ R2 → S be another parametrization with R ⊂ x̃(Ũ ) and set Q̃ = x̃−1 (R). Then
ZZ ZZ ZZ
∂(u, v)
|x̃u ∧ x̃v |dũdṽ = |xu ∧ xv | dũdṽ = |xu ∧ xv |dudv,
Q̃ Q̃ ∂(ũ, ṽ) Q̃

where the last equality comes from the theorem of change of variables in multiple integrals. The asserted
independence is therefore proved and we can make the following definition.

Definition 2.30 Let R ⊂ S be a bounded region of a regular surface contained in the coordinate neighborhood
of the parametrization x : U ⊂ R2 → S. The positive number
ZZ
|xu ∧ xv |dudv = A(R), Q = x−1 (R),
Q

is called the area of R.

It is convenient to observe that

|xu ∧ xv |2 + < xu , xv >2 = |xu |2 |xv |2 ,

which shows that the integrand of A(R) can be written as

p
|xu ∧ xv | = EG − F 2 .

Example 9. Let us compute the area of the torus in Example 2.

Solution. Recall that the coordinate neighborhood corresponding to the parametrization

x(u, v) = ((a + r cos u) cos v, (a + r cos u) sin v, r sin u), 0 < u < 2π, 0 < v < 2π,

which covers the torus, except for a meridian and a parallel. So the area of this torus is
Z 2π Z 2π p
A(R) = EG − F 2 dudv.
0 0
Lecture 2: Regular Surfaces 2-17

The coefficients of the first fundamental form are

E = r2 , F = 0, G = (r cos u + a)2 .

Hence p
EG − F 2 = r(r cos u + a).
So Z 2π Z 2π
A(R) = r(r cos u + a)du dv = 4π 2 ra.
0 0