Let $X$ be a nilpotent space such that there exists $p\geq 1$ with $H^p(X,\mathbb Q) \ne 0$ and $H^n(X,\mathbb Q)=0$ if $n>p$. Let $Y$ be a m-connected space with $m\geq p+1$ and $H^*(Y,\mathbb Q)$ is finitely generated as algebra. We assume that $X$ is formal and there exists $p$ odd such that $H^p(X,\mathbb Q) \ne 0$. We prove that if the space $\mathcal F(X,Y)$ of continuous maps from $X$ to $Y$ is formal, then $Y$ has the rational homotopy type of a product of Eilenberg Mac Lane spaces. At the opposite, we exhibit an example of a formal space $\mathcal F(S^2,Y)$ where $Y$ is not rationally equivalent to a product of Eilenberg Mac Lane spaces.
We define and discuss G-formality for certain spaces endowed with an action by a compact Lie group. This concept is essentially formality of the Borel construction of the space in a category of commutative differential graded algebras over R, where R is the cohomology of the classifying space BG. These results may be applied in computing the equivariant cohomology of their loop spaces.
Let X and Y be finite nilpotent CW complexes with dimension of X less than the connectivity of Y. Generalizing results of Vigué-Poirrier and Yamaguchi, we prove that the mapping space Map(X,Y) is rationally formal if and only if Y has the rational homotopy type of a finite product of odd dimensional spheres.
It is a well known fact that formal dg-algebras admit no non-trivial Massey products, while the converse fails. We prove that by restricting to dg-algebras whose induced product on cohomology is trivial, we do in fact get this converse. This allows us to prove that spaces of Lusternik-Schnirelmann category 1 are formal spaces.
A homotopy Gerstenhaber structure on a differential graded algebra is essentially a family of operations defining a multiplication on its bar construction. We prove that the normalized singular cochain algebra of a Davis-Januszkiewicz space is formal as a homotopy Gerstenhaber algebra, for any coefficient ring. This generalizes a recent result by the author about classifying spaces of tori and also strengthens the well-known dga formality result for Davis-Januszkiewicz spaces due to the author and Notbohm-Ray. As an application, we determine the cohomology rings of free and based loop spaces o…
We prove that the ordered configuration space of 4 or more points in the plane has a non-formal singular cochain algebra in characteristic two. This is proved by constructing an explicit non trivial obstruction class in the Hochschild cohomology of the cohomology ring of the configuration space, by means of the Barratt-Eccles-Smith simplicial model. We also show that if the number of points does not exceed its dimension, then an euclidean configuration space is intrinsically formal over any ring.
Sinha has constructed a cosimplicial space X for a fixed integer N. One of his main result states that for N > 3, X is a cosimplicial model for the space of long knots (modulo immersions). On the other hand, Lambrechts, Turchin and Volic showed that for N > 3 the homology Bousfield-Kan spectral sequence associated to Sinha's cosimplicial space collapses at the page 2 rationally. Their approach consists first to prove the formality of some other diagrams approximating X and next deduce the collapsing result. In this paper, we prove directly the formality of Sinha's cosimplicial space and this a…
We provide examples of homogeneous spaces which are neither symmetric spaces nor real cohomology spheres, yet have the property that every invariant metric is geometrically formal. We also extend the known obstructions to geometric formality to some new classes of homogeneous spaces and of biquotients, and to certain sphere bundles.
Let $X$ be a nilpotent space such that there exists $N\geq 1$ with $H^N(X,\mathbb Q) \ne 0$ and $H^n(X,\mathbb Q)=0$ if $n>N$. Let $Y$ be a m-connected space with $m\geq N+1$ and $H^*(Y,\mathbb Q)$ is finitely generated as algebra. We assume that the odd part of the rational Hurewicz homomorphism: $π_{odd}(X)\otimes \mathbb Q\to H_{odd}(X,\mathbb Q)$ is non-zero. We prove that if the space $\mathcal F(X,Y)$ of continuous maps from $X$ to $Y$ is rationally formal, then $Y$ has the rational homotopy type of a finite product of Eilenberg Mac Lane spaces. At the opposite, we exhibit an example of …
Given a fibration over the circle, we relate the eigenspace decomposition of the algebraic monodromy, the homological finiteness properties of the fiber, and the formality properties of the total space. In the process, we prove a more general result about iterated group extensions. As an application, we obtain new criteria for formality of spaces, and 1-formality of groups, illustrated by bundle constructions and various examples from low-dimensional topology and singularity theory.
We show that the isotropy action of a homogeneous space $G/K$, where $G$ and $K$ are compact, connected Lie groups and $K$ is defined by an automorphism on $G$, is equivariantly formal and that $(G, K)$ is a Cartan pair.
Compact symmetric spaces are probably one of the most prominent class of formal spaces, i.e. of spaces where the rational homotopy type is a formal consequence of the rational cohomology algebra. As a generalisation, it is even known that their isotropy action is equivariantly formal. In this article we show that $(\mathbb{Z}_2\oplus \mathbb{Z}_2)$-symmetric spaces are equivariantly formal and formal in the sense of Sullivan, in particular. Moreover, we give a short alternative proof of equivariant formality in the case of symmetric spaces with our new approach.
We prove that all generalised symmetric spaces of compact simple Lie groups are formal in the sense of Sullivan. Nevertheless, many of them, including all the non-symmetric flag manifolds, do not admit Riemannian metrics for which all products of harmonic forms are harmonic.
We study bicolored configurations of points in the Euclidean $n$-space that are constrained to remain either inside or outside a fixed Euclidean $m$-subspace, with $n - m \ge 2$. We define a higher-codimensional variant of the Swiss-Cheese operad, called the complementarily constrained disks operad $\mathsf{CD}_{mn}$, associated to such configurations. The operad $\mathsf{CD}_{mn}$ is weakly equivalent to the operad of locally constant factorization algebras on the stratified space $\{\mathbb{R}^{m} \subset \mathbb{R}^{n}\}$. We prove that this operad is formal over $\mathbb{R}$.
Formality is a topological property, defined in terms of Sullivan's model for a space. In the simply-connected setting, a space is formal if its rational homotopy type is determined by the rational cohomology ring. In the general setting, the weaker 1-formality property allows one to reconstruct the rational pro-unipotent completion of the fundamental group, solely from the cup products of degree 1 cohomology classes. In this note, we survey various facets of formality, with emphasis on the geometric and algebraic implications of 1-formality, and its relations to the cohomology jump loci and t…
Let $X$ be a simply connected path connected topological space which is formal in the sense of rational homotopy theory. Let $Y=X\cup_α\mathbb{D}^{n}$ where $α:\mathbb{S}^{n-1}\to X$ is a non-torsion element. Then we obtain a condition on $α$ for the formality of $Y$. We give several illustrative examples concerning the formality of a finite CW complex having only even dimensional cells. This is the corrected version of the earlier version which contained a serious error in Theorem 1.4. This theorem, which now Theorem 1.1 of this version, has now been corrected. The proofs of Theorems 1.1, 1.2…
We show that, for an arrangement of subspaces in a complex vector space with geometric intersection lattice, the complement of the arrangement is formal. We prove that the Morgan rational model for such an arrangement complement is formal as a differential graded algebra.
The framed little 2-discs operad is homotopy equivalent to the Kimura-Stasheff-Voronov cyclic operad of moduli spaces of genus zero stable curves with tangent rays at the marked points and nodes. We show that this cyclic operad is formal, meaning that its chains and its homology (the Batalin-Vilkovisky operad) are quasi-isomorphic cyclic operads. To prove this we introduce a new complex of graphs in which the differential is a combination of edge deletion and contraction, and we show that this complex resolves BV as a cyclic operad.
An action of a compact Lie group is called equivariantly formal, if the Leray--Serre spectral sequence of its Borel fibration degenerates at the E_2-term. This term is as prominent as it is restrictive. In this article, also motivated by the lack of junction between the notion of equivariant formality and the concept of formality of spaces (surging from rational homotopy theory) we suggest two new variations of equivariant formality: "MOD-formal actions" and "actions of formal core". We investigate and characterize these new terms in many different ways involving various tools from rational ho…
Let M be a smooth manifold and V a Euclidean space. Let Ebar(M,V) be the homotopy fiber of the map from Emb(M,V) to Imm(M,V). This paper is about the rational homology of Ebar(M,V). We study it by applying embedding calculus and orthogonal calculus to the bi-functor (M,V) |--> HQ /\Ebar(M,V)_+. Our main theorem states that if the dimension of V is more than twice the embedding dimension of M, the Taylor tower in the sense of orthogonal calculus (henceforward called ``the orthogonal tower'') of this functor splits as a product of its layers. Equivalently, the rational homology spectral sequence…
We explore the relation between cohomology jump loci in a finite Galois cover, formality properties and algebraic monodromy action. We show that the jump loci of the base and total space are essentially the same, provided the base space is 1-formal and the monodromy action in degree 1 is trivial. We use reduced multinet structures on line arrangements to construct components of the first characteristic variety of the Milnor fiber in degree 1, and to prove that the monodromy action is non-trivial in degree 1. For an arbitrary line arrangement, we prove that the triviality of the monodromy in de…
We use rational formality of configuration spaces and the bar construction to study the cohomology of the space of braids in dimension four or greater. We provide a diagram complex for braids and a quasi-isomorphism to the de Rham cochains on the space of braids. The quasi-isomorphism is given by a configuration space integral followed by Chen's iterated integrals. This extends results of Kohno and of Cohen and Gitler on the cohomology of the space of braids to a CDGA suitable for integration. We show that this integration is compatible with Bott-Taubes configuration space integrals for long l…
We establish that $E_n$-operads satisfy a rational intrinsic formality theorem for $n\geq 3$. We gain our results in the category of Hopf cooperads in cochain graded dg-modules which defines a model for the rational homotopy of operads in spaces. We consider, in this context, the dual cooperad of the $n$-Poisson operad $\mathsf{Pois}_n^c$, which represents the cohomology of the operad of little $n$-discs $\mathsf{D}_n$. We assume $n\geq 3$. We explicitly prove that a Hopf cooperad in cochain graded dg-modules $\mathsf{K}$ is weakly-equivalent (quasi-isomorphic) to $\mathsf{Pois}_n^c$ as a Hopf…
Let overline{M}_{g,n} be the moduli space of stable algebraic curves of genus g with n marked points. With the operations which relate the different moduli spaces identifying marked points, the family (overline{M}_{g,n})_{g,n} is a modular operad of projective smooth Deligne-Mumford stacks, overline{M}. In this paper we prove that the modular operad of singular chains C_*(overline{M};Q) is formal; so it is weakly equivalent to the modular operad of its homology H_*(overline{M};Q). As a consequence, the "up to homotopy" algebras of these two operads are the same. To obtain this result we prove …
We prove that the operad of framed little 2-discs is formal. Tamarkin and Kontsevich each proved that the unframed 2-discs operad is formal. The unframed 2-discs is an operad in the category of S^1-spaces, and the framed 2-discs operad can be constructed from the unframed 2-discs by forming the operadic semidirect product with the circle group. The idea of our proof is to show that Kontsevich's chain of quasi-isomorphisms is compatible with the circle actions and so one can essentially take the operadic semidirect product with the homology of S^1 everywhere to obtain a chain of quasi-isomorphi…
We study the formality of the total space of principal SU(2) and SO(3)-bundles over a Wolf space, that is a symmetric positive quaternionic Kähker manifold. We apply this to conclude that all the 3-Sasakian homogeneous spaces are formal. We also determine the principal SU(2) and SO(3)-bundles over the Wolf spaces whose total space is non-formal.
Let $G$ be a matroid on ground set \A. The Orlik-Solomon algebra $A(G)$ is the quotient of the exterior algebra \E on \A by the ideal \I generated by circuit boundaries. The quadratic closure $\bar{A}(G)$ of $A(G)$ is the quotient of \E by the ideal generated by the degree-two component of \I. We introduce the notion of \nbb set in $G$, determined by a linear order on \A, and show that the corresponding monomials are linearly independent in the quadratic closure $\bar{A}(G)$. As a consequence, $A(G)$ is a quadratic algebra only if $G$ is line-closed. An example of S.~Yuzvinsky proves the conve…
We study high-dimensional analogues of spaces of long knots. These are spaces of compactly-supported embeddings (modulo immersions) of $\mathbb{R}^m$ into $\mathbb{R}^n$. We view the space of embeddings as the value of a certain functor at $\mathbb{R}^m$, and we apply manifold calculus to this functor. Our first result says that the Taylor tower of this functor can be expressed as the space of maps between infinitesimal bimodules over the little disks operad. We then show that the formality of the little disks operad has implications for the homological behavior of the Taylor tower. Our second…
\emph{Scalable spaces} are simply connected compact manifolds or finite complexes whose real cohomology algebra embeds in their algebra of (flat) differential forms. This is a rational homotopy invariant property and all scalable spaces are formal; indeed, scalability can be thought of as a metric version of formality. They are also characterized by particularly nice behavior from the point of view of quantitative homotopy theory. Among other results, we show that spaces which are formal but not scalable provide counterexamples to Gromov's long-standing conjecture on distortion in higher homot…
Orbit spaces of equivariantly formal torus actions of complexity one
National Research University Higher School of Economics（国立研究高等经济学院）；Neapolis University Pafos（帕福斯新城市大学）；Osaka City University Advanced Mathematical Institute（大阪市立大学高级数学研究所）
