Affine Manifolds, Syz Geometry and the “y” Vertex

We study the real Monge-Ampère equation in two and three dimensions, both from the point of view of the SYZ conjecture, where solutions give rise to semi-flat Calabi-Yau’s and in affine differential geometry, where solutions yield parabolic affine sphere hypersurfaces. We find explicit examples, connect the holomorphic function representation to Hitchin’s description of special Lagrangian moduli space, and construct the developing map explicitly for a singularity corresponding to the type In elliptic fiber (after hyper-Kähler rotation). Following Baues and Cortés, we show that various types of metric cones over two-dimensional elliptic affine spheres generate solutions of the Monge-Ampère equation in three dimensions. We then prove a local and global existence theorem for an elliptic affine two-sphere metric with prescribed singularities. The metric cone over the two-sphere minus three points yields a parabolic affine sphere with singularities along a “Y”-shaped locus. This gives a semi-flat Calabi-Yau metric in a neighborhood of the “Y” vertex.