Alternative-mean trace divergences: geometry, data processing, and barycenters

Let $f:(0,\infty)\to(0,\infty)$ be a nontrivial normalized operator monotone function and set $s=f'(1)$. We introduce the alternative-mean trace functional $$ \altPhi_f(A,B) :=\Tr(A\nabla_s B) -\Tr\!\left( f(A^{-1}\sharp B)\,A\,f(A^{-1}\sharp B) \right). $$ on the positive definite cone. We pr