Dimensions for recurrence times : Topological and dynamical properties

Abstract

In this paper we give new properties of the dimension introduced by Afraimovich to characterize Poincaré recurrence and which we proposed to call Afraimovich-Pesin's (AP's) dimension. We will show in particular that AP's dimension is a topological invariant and that it often coincides with the asymptotic distribution of periodic points : deviations from this behavior could suggest that the AP's dimension is sensitive to some "non-typical" points.