An improved upper bound for the second eigenvalue on tori

Abstract: In this paper, we consider the problem of maximizing the second non-zero eigenvalue $\lambda_2(T,g)$ of the Laplace-Beltrami operator on a torus $(T,g)$, among all unit-area metrics in a fixed conformal class. Based on work by Karpukhin-Stern and Eddaoudi-Girouard, we give an explicit upper bound for $\lambda_2(T,g)$ in a fixed conformal class of the torus. Our bound improves previous estimates based on conformal area and shows that, in the majority of conformal classes, the second eigenvalue is strictly less than $\frac{8\pi^2}{\sqrt{3}}+8\pi$, supporting the conjecture of Kao-Lai-Osting that this value is the supremum of $\lambda_2(T,g)$ over all conformal classes. Moreover, we give the uniform upper bound $\lambda_2(T,g)< \frac{16\pi^2}{\sqrt{3}}$ for all unit-area metrics $g$ on $T$.