  The model of hole superconductivity predicts that the superfluid weight in
the zero-frequency $\delta$-function in the optical conductivity has an
anomalous contribution from high frequencies, due to lowering of the system's
kinetic energy upon entering the superconducting state. The lowering of kinetic
energy, mainly in-plane in origin, accounts for both the condensation energy of
the superconductor as well as an increased potential energy due to larger
Coulomb repulsion in the paired state. It leads to an apparent violation of the
conductivity sum rule, which in the clean limit we predict to be substantially
larger for in-plane than for c-axis conductivity. However, because cuprates are
in the dirty limit for c-axis transport, the sum rule violation is found to be
greatly enhanced in the c-direction. The model predicts the sum rule violation
to be largest in the underdoped regime and to decrease with doping, more
rapidly in the c-direction that in the plane. So far, experiments have detected
sum rule violation in c-axis transport in several cuprates, as well as a
decrease and disappearance of this violation for increasing doping, but no
violation in-plane. We explore the predictions of the model for a wide range of
parameters, both in the absence and in the presence of disorder, and the
relation with current experimental knowledge.
