A nilpotent Roth theorem

Let T and S be invertible measure preserving transformations of a probability measure space (X, ℬ, μ). We prove that if the group generated by T and S is nilpotent, then exists in L ²-norm for any u, v∈L ^∞(X, ℬ, μ). We also show that for A∈ℬ with μ(A)>0 one has . By the way of contrast, we bring examples showing that if measure preserving transformations T, S generate a solvable group, then (i) the above limits do not have to exist; (ii) the double recurrence property fails, that is, for some A∈ℬ, μ(A)>0, one may have μ(A∩T _-n A∩S ^{- n} A)=0 for all n∈ℕ. Finally, we show that when T and S generate a nilpotent group of class ≤c, in L ²(X) for all u, v∈L ^∞(X) if and only if T×S is ergodic on X×X and the group generated by T ^-1 S, T ^-2 S ²,..., T ^-c S ^c acts ergodically on X. Oblatum 19-V-2000 & 5-VII-2001?Published online: 12 October 2001