Déformations d'algèbres de Weyl

We study here the rigidity of algebras which are the completion of the Weyl algebra A or the universal enveloping algebra A′ of the Lie algebra of the 2k+1 dimensional Heisenberg group. We define a canonical completion A_* of A and of A and prove that A_* does not does not have any continuous, Sp(k)-invariant deformation. Finally, we study the cohomology group associated to the problem of deformation of A′ and its completion. The invariant cohomology is one dimensional.     

On the cohomology of the Weyl algebra,the quantum plane,and the q-Weyl algebra

Deformation theory can be used to compute the cohomology of a deformed algebra with coefficients in itself from that of the original. Using the invariance of the Euler–Poincaré characteristic under deformation, it is applied here to compute the cohomology of the Weyl algebra, the algebra of the quantum plane, and the q-Weyl algebra. The behavior of the cohomology when q is a root of unity may encode some number theoretic information.     

Cosimplicial DGLAs in Deformation Theory

We identify ?ech cocycles in nonabelian (formal) group cohomology with Maurer–Cartan elements in a suitable L _∞-algebra. Applications to deformation theory are described.     

Cohomologie des espaces symétriques de Drinfeld et cocycles harmoniques

We show that the cohomology groups of the Drinfeld symmetric space $\text{Ω}{}^{\mathrm{(n+1)}}$ defined over a local field of any characteristic are GL_n+1-isomorphic to certain spaces of harmonic cochains on the Bruhat–Tits building. To cite this article: Y. Aït Amrane, C. R. Acad. Sci. Paris, Ser. I 338 (2004).     

Dirichlet units and critical points of closed 1-forms

S.P. Novikov developed an analog of the Morse theory for closed 1-forms. In this paper we suggest an analog of the Lusternik-Schnirelman theory for closed 1-forms. For any cohomology class ξ ε H¹(X,R) we define an integer cl(ξ) (the cup-length associated with ξ); we prove that any closed 1-form representing ξ has at least cl(ξ) - 1 critical points. The number cl(ξ) is defined using cup-products in cohomology of some flat line bundles, such that their monodromy is described by complex numbers, which are not Dirichlet units.     

Injective resolutions of BG and derived moduli spaces of local systems

It was suggested on several occasions by Deligne, Drinfeld and Kontsevich that all the moduli spaces arising in the classical problems of deformation theory should be extended to natural “derived” moduli spaces which are always smooth in an appropriate sense and whose tangent spaces involve the entire cohomology of the sheaf of infinitesimal automorphisms, not just H¹. In this note we give an algebraic construction of such an extension for the simplest class of moduli spaces, namely for moduli of local systems (representations of the fundamental group).     

The realization space of a Π-algebra: a moduli problem in algebraic topology

A Π-algebra A is a graded group with all of the algebraic structure possessed by the homotopy groups of a pointed connected topological space. We study the moduli space R(A) of realizations of A, which is defined to be the disjoint union, indexed by weak equivalence classes of CW-complexes X with , of the classifying space of the monoid of self homotopy equivalences of X. Our approach amounts to a kind of homotopical deformation theory: we obtain a tower whose homotopy limit is R(A), in which the space at the bottom is BAut(A) and the successive fibres are determined by Π-algebra cohomology. (This cohomology is the analog for Π-algebras of the Hochschild cohomology of an associative ring or the André-Quillen cohomology of a commutative ring.) It seems clear that the deformation theory can be applied with little change to study other moduli problems in algebra and topology.     

Abelian categories of modules over a (lax) monoidal functor

Crane and Yetter (Deformations of (bi)tensor categories, Cahier de Topologie et Géometrie Differentielle Catégorique, 1998) introduced a deformation theory for monoidal categories. The related deformation theory for monoidal functors introduced by Yetter (in: E. Getzler, M. Kapranov (Eds.), Higher Category Theory, American Mathematical Society Contemporary Mathematics, Vol. 230, American Mathematical Society, Providence, RI, 1998, pp. 117-134.) is a proper generalization of Gerstenhaber's deformation theory for associative algebras (Ann. Math. 78(2) (1963) 267; 79(1) (1964) 59; in: M. Hazewinkel, M. Gerstenhaber (Eds.), Deformation Theory of Algebras and Structure and Applications, Kluwer, Dordrecht, 1988, pp. 11-264). In the present paper we solidify the analogy between lax monoidal functors and associative algebras by showing that under suitable conditions, categories of functors with an action of a lax monoidal functor are abelian categories. The deformation complex of a monoidal functor is generalized to an analogue of the Hochschild complex with coefficients in a bimodule, and the deformation complex of a monoidal natural transformation is shown to be a special case. It is shown further that the cohomology of a monoidal functor F with coefficients in an F,F-bimodule is given by right derived functors.     

Homotopy classification of braided graded categorical groups

For any group G, a certain cohomology theory of G-modules is developed. This cohomology arises from the homotopy theory of G-spaces and it is called the “abelian cohomology of G-modules”. Then, as the main results of this paper, natural one-to-one correspondences between elements of the 3^rd cohomology groups of G-modules, G-equivariant pointed simply-connected homotopy 3-types and equivalence classes of braided G-graded categorical groups are established. The relationship among all these objects with equivariant quadratic functions between G-modules is also discussed.     

A SURVEY OF THE ADDITIVE EIGENVALUE PROBLEM (WITH APPENDIX BY M. KAPOVICH)

The classical Hermitian eigenvalue problem addresses the following question: What are the possible eigenvalues of the sum A + B of two Hermitian matrices A and B, provided we fix the eigenvalues of A and B. A systematic study of this problem was initiated by H. Weyl (1912). By virtue of contributions from a long list of mathematicians, notably Weyl (1912), Horn (1962), Klyachko (1998) and Knutson–Tao (1999), the problem is finally settled. The solution asserts that the eigenvalues of A + B are given in terms of certain system of linear inequalities in the eigenvalues of A and B. These inequalities (called the Hom inequalities) are given explicitly in terms of certain triples of Schubert classes in the singular cohomology of Grassmannians and the standard cup product. Belkale (2001) gave a smaller set of inequalities for the problem in this case (which was shown to be optimal by Knutson–Tao–Woodward). The Hermitian eigenvalue problem has been extended by Berenstein–Sjamaar (2000) and Kapovich–Leeb–Millson (2009) for any semisimple complex algebraic group G. Their solution is again in terms of a system of linear inequalities obtained from certain triples of Schubert classes in the singular cohomology of the partial ag varieties G/P (P being a maximal parabolic subgroup) and the standard cup product. However, their solution is far from being optimal. In a joint work with P. Belkale, we define a deformation of the cup product in the cohomology of G/P and use this new product to generate our system of inequalities which solves the problem for any G optimally (as shown by Ressayre). This article is a survey (with more or less complete proofs) of this additive eigenvalue problem. The eigenvalue problem is equivalent to the saturated tensor product problem. We also give an extension of the saturated tensor product problem to the saturated restriction problem for any pair G ? ? of connected reductive algebraic groups. In the appendix by M. Kapovich, a connection between metric geometry and the representation theory of complex semisimple algebraic groups is explained. The connection runs through the theory of buildings. This connection is exploited to give a uniform (though not optimal) saturation factor for any G.     

Witten Deformation and Polynomial Differential Forms

As is well known, the Witten deformation d_h of the De Rham complex computes the De Rham cohomology. In this paper, we study the Witten deformation on noncompact manifolds and restrict it on differential forms which behave polynomially near infinity. Such polynomial differential forms naturally appear on manifolds with the cylindrical structure. We prove that the cohomology of the Witten deformation d_h acting on the complex of the polynomially growing forms (depends on h and) can be computed as the cohomology of the negative remote fiber of h. We show that the assumptions of our main theorem are satisfied in a number of interesting special cases, including generic real polynomials on R_n.     

On the moduli space of deformations of bihamiltonian hierarchies of hydrodynamic type

We investigate the deformation theory of the simplest bihamiltonian structure of hydrodynamic type, that of the dispersionless KdV hierarchy. We prove that all of its deformations are quasi-trivial in the sense of B. Dubrovin and Y. Zhang, that is, trivial after allowing transformations where the first partial derivative ∂u of the field is inverted. We reformulate the question about deformations as a question about the cohomology of a certain double complex, and calculate the appropriate cohomology group.     

Cohomologie des variétés de Deligne-Lusztig

We study the cohomology of Deligne-Lusztig varieties with aim the construction of actions of Hecke algebras on such cohomologies, as predicted by the conjectures of Broué, Malle and Michel ultimately aimed at providing an explicit version of the abelian defect conjecture. We develop the theory for varieties associated to elements of the braid monoid and partial compactifications of them. We are able to compute the cohomology of varieties associated to (possibly twisted) rank 2 groups and powers of the longest element w₀ (some indeterminacies remain for G₂). We use this to construct Hecke algebra actions on the cohomology of varieties associated to w₀ or its square, for groups of arbitrary rank. In the subsequent work [F. Digne, J. Michel, Endomorphisms of Deligne-Lusztig varieties, Nagoya J. Math. 183 (2006)], we construct actions associated to more general regular elements and we study their traces on cohomology.     

Link homology theories from symplectic geometry

For each positive integer n, Khovanov and Rozansky constructed an invariant of links in the form of a doubly-graded cohomology theory whose Euler characteristic is the sl(n) link polynomial. We use Lagrangian Floer cohomology on some suitable affine varieties to build a similar series of link invariants, and we conjecture them to be equal to those of Khovanov and Rozansky after a collapse of the bigrading. Our work is a generalization of that of Seidel and Smith, who treated the case n=2.     

On the second cohomology of an algebraic group and of its lie algebra in a positive characteristic

Necessary and sufficient isomorphism conditions for the second cohomology group of an algebraic group with an irreducible root system over an algebraically closed field of characteristic p ≥ 3h ? 3, where h stands for the Coxeter number, and the corresponding second cohomology group of its Lie algebra with coefficients in simple modules are obtained, and also some nontrivial examples of isomorphisms of the second cohomology groups of simple modules are found. In particular, it follows from the results obtained here that, among the simple algebraic groups SL₂(k), SL₃(k), SL₄(k), Sp₄(k), and G ₂, nontrivial isomorphisms of this kind exist for SL₄(k) and G ₂ only. For SL₄(k), there are two simple modules with nontrivial second cohomology and, for G ₂, there is one module of this kind. All nontrivial examples of second cohomology obtained here are one-dimensional.     

The homotopy categorical crossed module of a CW-complex

Crossed modules have longstanding uses in homotopy theory and the cohomology of groups. The corresponding notion in the setting of categorical groups, that is, categorical crosses modules, allowed the development of a low-dimensional categorical group cohomology. Now, its relevance is also shown here to homotopy types by associating, to any pointed CW-complex (X,∗), a categorical crossed module that algebraically represents the homotopy 3-type of X.     

The global decomposition theorem for Hochschild (co-)homology of singular spaces via the Atiyah-Chern character

We generalize the decomposition theorem of Hochschild, Kostant and Rosenberg for Hochschild (co-)homology to arbitrary morphisms between complex spaces or schemes over a field of characteristic zero. To be precise, we show that for each such morphism X→Y, the Hochschild complex HX/Y, as introduced in [R.-O. Buchweitz, H. Flenner, Global Hochschild (co-)homology of singular spaces, Adv. Math. (2007), doi: 10.1016/j.aim.2007.06.012], decomposes naturally in the derived category D(X) into _⊕p?0Sp(LX/Y[1]), the direct sum of the derived symmetric powers of the shifted cotangent complex, a result due to Quillen in the affine case.Even in the affine case, our proof is new and provides further information. It shows that the decomposition is given explicitly and naturally by the universal Atiyah-Chern character, the exponential of the universal Atiyah class.We further use the decomposition theorem to show that the semiregularity map for perfect complexes factors through Hochschild homology and, in turn, factors the Atiyah-Hochschild character through the characteristic homomorphism from Hochschild cohomology to the graded centre of the derived category.     

Deformation spaces of one-dimensional formal modules and their cohomology

Let Mm be the formal scheme which represents the functor of deformations of a one-dimensional formal module over equipped with a level-m-structure. By work of Boyer (in equal characteristic) and Harris and Taylor, the ?-adic étale cohomology of the generic fibre Mm of Mm realizes simultaneously the local Langlands and Jacquet-Langlands correspondences. The proofs given so far use Drinfeld modular varieties or Shimura varieties to derive this local result. In this paper we show without the use of global moduli spaces that the Jacquet-Langlands correspondence is realized by the Euler-Poincaré characteristic of the cohomology. Under a certain finiteness assumption on the cohomology groups, it is shown that the correspondence is realized in only one degree. One main ingredient of the proof consists in analyzing the boundary of the deformation spaces and in studying larger spaces which can be considered as compactifications of the spaces Mm.     

Cheeger–Chern–Simons Theory and Differential String Classes

We construct new concrete examples of relative differential characters, which we call Cheeger–Chern–Simons characters. They combine the well-known Cheeger–Simons characters with Chern–Simons forms. In the same way as Cheeger–Simons characters generalize Chern–Simons invariants of oriented closed manifolds, Cheeger–Chern–Simons characters generalize Chern–Simons invariants of oriented manifolds with boundary. We study the differential cohomology of compact Lie groups G and their classifying spaces BG. We show that the even degree differential cohomology of BG canonically splits into Cheeger–Simons characters and topologically trivial characters. We discuss the transgression in principal G-bundles and in the universal bundle. We introduce two methods to lift the universal transgression to a differential cohomology valued map. They generalize the Dijkgraaf–Witten correspondence between 3-dimensional Chern–Simons theories and Wess–Zumino–Witten terms to fully extended higher-order Chern–Simons theories. Using these lifts, we also prove two versions of a differential Hopf theorem. Using Cheeger–Chern–Simons characters and transgression, we introduce the notion of differential trivializations of universal characteristic classes. It generalizes well-established notions of differential String classes to arbitrary degree. Specializing to the class \({\frac{1}{2} p_1 \in H^4(B{\rm Spin}_n;\mathbb{Z})}\), we recover isomorphism classes of geometric string structures on Spin _n -bundles with connection and the corresponding spin structures on the free loop space. The Cheeger–Chern–Simons character associated with the class \({\frac{1}{2} p_1}\) together with its transgressions to loop space and higher mapping spaces defines a Chern–Simons theory, extended down to points. Differential String classes provide trivializations of this extended Chern–Simons theory. This setting immediately generalizes to arbitrary degree: for any universal characteristic class of principal G-bundles, we have an associated Cheeger–Chern–Simons character and extended Chern–Simons theory. Differential trivialization classes yield trivializations of this extended Chern–Simons theory.