In this paper we study general torus actions on manifolds with isolated fixed points from combinatorial point of view. The main object of study is the poset of face submanifolds of such actions. We introduce the notion of a locally geometric poset -- the graded poset locally modelled by geometric lattices, and prove that for any torus action, the poset of its faces is locally geometric. Next we discuss the relations between posets of faces and GKM-theory. In particular, we define the face poset of an abstract GKM-graph and show how to reconstruct the face poset of a manifold from its GKM-graph.
Blasiak verified a conjecture of White for graphic matroids by showing that the toric ideal of a graphic matroid is generated by quadrics. In this paper, we extend this result to frame matroids satisfying a linearity condition. Such classes of matroids include graphic matroids, bicircular matroids, signed graphic matroids, and more generally frame matroids obtained from group-labelled graphs.
In 1980, White conjectured that the toric ideal of a matroid is generated by quadratic binomials corresponding to a symmetric exchange. In this paper, we compute Gröbner bases of toric ideals associated with matroids and show that, for every matroid on ground sets of size at most seven except for two matroids, Gröbner bases of toric ideals consist of quadratic binomials corresponding to a symmetric exchange.
Describing minimal generating sets of toric ideals is a well-studied and difficult problem. Neil White conjectured in 1980 that the toric ideal associated to a matroid is generated by quadrics corresponding to single element symmetric exchanges. We give a combinatorial proof of White's conjecture for graphic matroids.
We show that the toric ideal of a lattice path polymatroid is generated by quadrics corresponding to symmetric exchanges, and give a monomial order under which these quadrics form a Gröbner basis. We then obtain an analogous result for lattice path matroids.
It is known that a lattice path matroid polytope can be associated with two given noncrossing lattice paths on $\mathbb{Z}\times\mathbb{Z}$ with the same end points. In this short note we give explicit formulae for the $f$-vector, toric $f$- and $g$-polynomials of a lattice path matroid polytope when two boundary paths enclose a hook shape.
In 1980, White conjectured that the toric ideal associated to a matroid is generated by binomials corresponding to a symmetric exchange. In this paper, we prove that classes of matroids for which the toric ideal is generated by quadrics and that has quadratic Gröbner bases, are closed under series and parallel extensions, series and parallel connections, and 2-sums.
In $1980$ White conjectured that every element of the toric ideal of a matroid is generated by quadratic binomials corresponding to symmetric exchanges. We prove White's conjecture for high degrees with respect to the rank. This extends our result arXiv:1302.5236 confirming White's conjecture `up to saturation'. Furthermore, we study degrees of Gröbner bases and Betti tables of the toric ideals of matroids of a fixed rank.
We introduce the notion of an arithmetic matroid, whose main example is given by a list of elements of a finitely generated abelian group. In particular we study the representability of its dual, providing an extension of the Gale duality to this setting. Guided by the geometry of generalized toric arrangements, we provide a combinatorial interpretation of the associated arithmetic Tutte polynomial, which can be seen as a generalization of Crapo's formula for the classical Tutte polynomial.
Describing minimal generating set of a toric ideal is a well-studied and difficult problem. In 1980 White conjectured that the toric ideal associated to a matroid is equal to the ideal generated by quadratic binomials corresponding to symmetric exchanges. We prove White's conjecture up to saturation, that is that the saturations of both ideals are equal. In the language of algebraic geometry this means that both ideals define the same projective scheme. Additionally we prove the full conjecture for strongly base orderable matroids.
In this paper, we investigate three problems concerning the toric ideal associated to a matroid. Firstly, we list all matroids $\mathcal M$ such that its corresponding toric ideal $I_{\mathcal M}$ is a complete intersection. Secondly, we handle with the problem of detecting minors of a matroid $\mathcal M$ from a minimal set of binomial generators of $I_{\mathcal M}$. In particular, given a minimal set of binomial generators of $I_{\mathcal M}$ we provide a necessary condition for $\mathcal M$ to have a minor isomorphic to $\mathcal U_{d,2d}$ for $d \geq 2$. This condition is proved to be suff…
The toric variety of a matroid is projectively normal, and therefore it is Cohen-Macaulay. We provide a complete graph-theoretic classification when the toric variety of a graphic matroid is Gorenstein.
Building on a recent joint paper with Sturmfels, here we argue that the combinatorics of matroids is intimately related to the geometry and topology of toric hyperkaehler varieties. We show that just like toric varieties occupy a central role in Stanley's proof for the necessity of McMullen's conjecture (or g-inequalities) about the classification of face vectors of simplicial polytopes, the topology of toric hyperkaehler varieties leads to new restrictions on face vectors of matroid complexes. Namely in this paper we give two proofs that the injectivity part of the Hard Lefschetz theorem surv…
Extending work of Bielawski-Dancer and Konno, we develop a theory of toric hyperkahler varieties, which involves toric geometry, matroid theory and convex polyhedra. The framework is a detailed study of semi-projective toric varieties, meaning GIT quotients of affine spaces by torus actions, and specifically, of Lawrence toric varieties, meaning GIT quotients of even-dimensional affine spaces by symplectic torus actions. A toric hyperkahler variety is a complete intersection in a Lawrence toric variety. Both varieties are non-compact, and they share the same cohomology ring, namely, the Stanle…
We show that the integral cohomology algebra of the complement of a toric arrangement is not determined by the poset of layers. Moreover, the rational cohomology algebra is not determined by the arithmetic matroid (however it is determined by the poset of layers).
A matroid is Gorenstein if its toric variety is. Hibi, Lasoń, Matsuda, Michałek, and Vodička provided a full graph-theoretic classification of Gorenstein matroids associated to simple graphs. We extend this classification to multigraphs.
It is known that for the natural algebraic torus actions on the Grassmannians, the closures of torus orbits are toric varieties, and that these toric varieties are smooth if and only if the corresponding matroid polytopes are simple. We prove that simple matroid polytopes are products of simplices and smooth torus orbit closures in the Grassmannians are products of complex projective spaces. Moreover, it turns out that the smooth torus orbit closures are uniquely determined by the corresponding simple matroid polytopes.
Given the toric (or toral) arrangement defined by a root system $Φ$, we describe the poset of its layers (connected components of intersections) and we count its elements. Indeed we show how to reduce to zero-dimensional layers, and in this case we provide an explicit formula involving the maximal subdiagrams of the affine Dynkin diagram of $Φ$. Then we compute the Euler characteristic and the Poincare' polynomial of the complement of the arrangement, which is the set of regular points of the torus.
We study the representability problem for torsion-free arithmetic matroids. By using a new operation called "reduction" and a "signed Hermite normal form", we provide and implement an algorithm to compute all the representations, up to equivalence. As an application, we disprove two conjectures about the poset of layers and the independence poset of a toric arrangement.
The lectures are devoted to a remarkable class of $3$-dimensional polytopes, which are mathematical models of the important object of quantum physics, quantum chemistry and nanotechnology -- fullerenes. The main goal is to show how results of toric topology help to build combinatorial invariants of fullerenes. Main notions are introduced during the lectures. The lecture notes are addressed to a wide audience.
Several rigidity problems in toric topology are addressed in \cite{ma-su08}. In this paper, we survey results on those problems including recent development.
In this paper, we introduce new combinatorial invariants of any finite simple graph, which arise in toric topology. We compute the $i$-th (rational) Betti number and Euler characteristic of the real toric variety associated to a graph associahedron $P_{\B(G)}$. They can be calculated by a purely combinatorial method (in terms of graphs) and are named $a_i(G)$ and $b(G)$, respectively. To our surprise, for specific families of the graph $G$, our invariants are deeply related to well-known combinatorial sequences such as the Catalan numbers and Euler zigzag numbers.
We prove that the external activity complex $\textrm{Act}_<(M)$ of a matroid is shellable. In fact, we show that every linear extension of LasVergnas's external/internal order $<_{ext/int}$ on $M$ provides a shelling of $\textrm{Act}_<(M)$. We also show that every linear extension of LasVergnas's internal order $<_{int}$ on $M$ provides a shelling of the independence complex $IN(M)$. As a corollary, $\textrm{Act}_<(M)$ and $M$ have the same $h$-vector. We prove that, after removing its cone points, the external activity complex is contractible if $M$ contains $U_{3,1}$ as a minor, and a sphere…
Matroid bundles, introduced by MacPherson, are combinatorial analogues of real vector bundles. This paper sets up the foundations of matroid bundles, and defines a natural transformation from isomorphism classes of real vector bundles to isomorphism classes of matroid bundles, as well as a transformation from matroid bundles to spherical quasifibrations. The poset of oriented matroids of a fixed rank classifies matroid bundles, and the above transformations give a splitting from topology to combinatorics back to topology. This shows the mod 2 cohomology of the poset of rank k oriented matroids…
We initiate the study of group actions on (possibly infinite) semimatroids and geometric semilattices. To every such action is naturally associated an orbit-counting function, a two-variable "Tutte" polynomial and a poset which, in the realizable case, coincides with the poset of connected components of intersections of the associated toric arrangement. In this structural framework we recover and strongly generalize many enumerative results about arithmetic matroids, arithmetic Tutte polynomials and toric arrangements by finding new combinatorial interpretations beyond the realizable case. In …
It is known that there are finitely many simplicial complexes (up to isomorphism) with a given number of vertices. Translating to the language of $h$-vectors, there are finitely many simplicial complexes of bounded dimension with $h_1=k$ for any natural number $k$. In this paper we study the question at the other end of the $h$-vector: Are there only finitely many $(d-1)$-dimensional simplicial complexes with $h_d=k$ for any given $k$? The answer is no if we consider general complexes, but when focus on three cases coming from matroids: (i) independence complexes, (ii) broken circuit complexes…
The augmented Bergman complex of a matroid is a simplicial complex introduced recently in work of Braden, Huh, Matherne, Proudfoot and Wang. It may be viewed as a hybrid of two well-studied pure shellable simplicial complexes associated to matroids: the independent set complex and Bergman complex. It is shown here that the augmented Bergman complex is also shellable, via two different families of shelling orders. Furthermore, comparing the description of its homotopy type induced from the two shellings re-interprets a known convolution formula counting bases of the matroid. The representation …
Toric topology emerged in the end of the 1990s on the borders of equivariant topology, algebraic and symplectic geometry, combinatorics and commutative algebra. It has quickly grown up into a very active area with many interdisciplinary links and applications, and continues to attract experts from different fields. The key players in toric topology are moment-angle manifolds, a family of manifolds with torus actions defined in combinatorial terms. Their construction links to combinatorial geometry and algebraic geometry of toric varieties via the related notion of a quasitoric manifold. Discov…
We investigate small covers and quasitoric over the duals of neighborly simplicial polytopes with small number of vertices in dimensions $4$, $5$, $6$ and $7$. In the most of the considered cases we obtain the complete classification of small covers. The lifting conjecture in all cases is verified to be true. The problem of cohomological rigidity for small covers is also studied and we have found a whole new series of weakly cohomologically rigid simple polytopes. New examples of manifolds provide the first known examples of quasitoric manifolds in higher dimensions whose orbit polytopes have …
This is a collection of results on the topology of toric symplectic manifolds. Using an idea of Borisov, we show that a closed symplectic manifold supports at most a finite number of toric structures. Further, the product of two projective spaces of complex dimension at least two (and with a standard product symplectic form) has a unique toric structure. We then discuss various constructions, using wedging to build a monotone toric symplectic manifold whose center is not the unique point displaceable by probes, and bundles and blow ups to form manifolds with more than one toric structure. The …
We study the topology of toric maps. We show that if $f\colon X\to Y$ is a proper toric morphism, with $X$ simplicial, then the cohomology of every fiber of $f$ is pure and of Hodge-Tate type. When the map is a fibration, we give an explicit formula for the Betti numbers of the fibers in terms of a relative version of the $f$-vector, extending the usual formula for the Betti numbers of a simplicial complete toric variety. We then describe the Decomposition Theorem for a toric fibration, giving in particular a nonnegative combinatorial invariant attached to each cone in the fan of $Y$, which is…
We apply a theorem of Gel'fand, Goresky, MacPherson, and Serganova about matroid polytopes to study semistability of partial flags relative to a T-linearized ample line bundle of a flag space F = SL(n)/P where T is a maximal torus in SL(n) and P is a parabolic subgroup containing T. We find that the semistable points are all detected by invariant sections of degree one regardless of the line bundle or linearization thereof, provided there exists at least one nonzero invariant section of degree one. In this case the degree one sections are sufficient to give a well defined map from the G.I.T. q…
Let $\mathbf{k}$ be the field $\mathbb{F}_p$ or the ring $\mathbb{Z}$. We study combinatorial and topological properties of the universal simplicial complexes $X(\mathbf{k}^n)$ and $K(\mathbf{k}^n)$ whose simplices are certain unimodular subsets of $\mathbf{k}^n$. As a main result we show that $X(\mathbf{k}^n)$, $K(\mathbf{k}^n)$ and the links of their simplicies are homotopy equivalent to a wedge of spheres specifying the exact number of spheres in the corresponding wedge decompositions. This is a generalisation of Davis and Januszkiewicz's result that $K(\mathbb{Z}^n)$ and $K(\mathbb{F}_2^n)…
In this paper we introduce a direct family of simple polytopes $P^{0}\subset P^{1}\subset\ldots$ such that for any $k$, $2\leq k\leq n$ there are non-trivial strictly defined Massey products of order $k$ in the cohomology rings of their moment-angle manifolds $\mathcal Z_{P^n}$. We prove that the direct sequence of manifolds $\ast\subset S^{3}\hookrightarrow\ldots\hookrightarrow\mathcal Z_{P^n}\hookrightarrow\mathcal Z_{P^{n+1}}\hookrightarrow\ldots$ has the following properties: every manifold $\mathcal Z_{P^n}$ is a retract of $\mathcal Z_{P^{n+1}}$, and one has inverse sequences in cohomolo…
