Let G be a torsion-free, finitely generated, nilpotent and metabelian group. In this work, we show that G embeds into the group of orientation-preserving $C^{1+\alpha }$-diffeomorphisms of the compact interval for all $\alpha < 1/k$, where k is the torsion-free rank of $G/A$ and A is a maximal abelian subgroup. We show that, in many situations, the corresponding $1/k$ is critical in the sense that there is no embedding of G with higher regularity. A particularly nice family where this happens is the family of $(2n+1)$-dimensional Heisenberg groups, for which we can show that the critical regularity is equal to $1+1/n$.

We calculate asymptotic estimates for the conjugacy growth function of finitely generated class 2 nilpotent groups whose derived subgroups are infinite cyclic, including the so-called higher Heisenberg groups. We prove that these asymptotics are stable when passing to commensurable groups, by understanding their twisted conjugacy growth. We also use these estimates to prove that, in certain cases, the conjugacy growth series cannot be a holonomic function.

In this paper, we prove contact Poincaré and Sobolev inequalities in Heisenberg groups $\mathbb{H}^{n}$, where the word ‘contact’ is meant to stress that de Rham’s exterior differential is replaced by the exterior differential of the so-called Rumin complex $(E_{0}^{\bullet },d_{c})$, which recovers the scale invariance under the group dilations associated with the stratification of the Lie algebra of $\mathbb{H}^{n}$. In addition, we construct smoothing operators for differential forms on sub-Riemannian contact manifolds with bounded geometry, which act trivially on cohomology. For instance, this allows us to replace a closed form, up to adding a controlled exact form, with a much more regular differential form.

We extend an uncertainty principle due to Cowling and Price to Euclidean spaces, Heisenberg groups and the Euclidean motion group of the plane. This uncertainty principle is a generalisation of a classical result due to Hardy. We also show that on the real line this uncertainty principle is almost equivalent to Hardy's theorem.

A new proof of a product formula for Laguerre polynomials, due originally to Watson, is given. Considering the commutative Banach algebra of radial functions on the Heisenberg groups Hn, n ≧ 2, we observe that Watson's formula holds for z = 1,2, 3, …. Then, applying a complex function theory argument, we establish the validity of this formula for other complex values of z, i.e. for Re z > - 1/2.