A Riemannian manifold $(M,g)$ is locally conformally flat if it is locally conformal to $\mathbb{R}^n$ with the flat metric. I learn that Weyl tensor of a locally conformally flat manifold must vanish. I would like to ask: Is there any example of manifold $M$ such that it cannot be equipped with a metric $g$ with $(M,g)$ being locally flat? Is there any topological restriction on locally confomrally flat manifolds? Is there any classification theorem for locally conformally flat manifolds?
[Math] locally conformally flat manifold
dg.differential-geometry
Best Answer
The simplest example is $S^n$, it is locally conformally flat with the standard metric, and is not flat for obvious reasons.
While flat manifolds are precisely quotients of $\mathbb R^n$ by discreet group of isometries, one should not expect to have a classification of conformally flat manifolds in higher dimensions. For example, already in dimension $4$ it was proven by Kapovich in
M. Kapovich. Conformally flat metrics on 4-manifolds. J. Differential Geom. 66 (2004), no. 2, 289–301,
that arbitrary finitely presented group can be a subgroup of a fundamental group of a conformally flat manifold.
The article of Kapovich is and from its introduction you will learn a lot on the question. $4$-dimensional manifolds with LCF structure have zero signature, in dimension $3$ it is known that some manfiolds don't admit conformally flat structure, first example was constructed in W. Goldman, Conformally flat manifolds with nilpotent holonomy and the uniformization problem for $3$-manifolds, Transactions of AMS 278 (1983).
One more remark -- all hyperbolic manifolds (of constant negative sectional curvature) are all conformally flat. A connected sum of two conformally flat manifolds is conformally flat and so this already gives you a large collection of examples.