Here we prove the necessary analytic results to construct a Morse theory for the Yang-Mills-Higgs functional on the space of Higgs bundles over a compact Riemann surface. The main result is that the gradient flow with initial conditions $(A'', ϕ)$ converges to a critical point of this functional, the isomorphism class of which is given by the graded object associated to the Harder-Narasimhan-Seshadri filtration of $(A'', ϕ)$. In particular, the results of this paper show that the failure of hyperkähler Kirwan surjectivity for rank 2 fixed determinant Higgs bundles does not occur because of a failure of the existence of a Morse theory.
This paper uses Morse-theoretic techniques to compute the equivariant Betti numbers of the space of semistable rank two degree zero Higgs bundles over a compact Riemann surface, a method in the spirit of Atiyah and Bott's original approach for semistable holomorphic bundles. This leads to a natural proof that the hyperkähler Kirwan map is surjective for the non-fixed determinant case.
In this article, we study conjectures of Sandon on the minimal number of translated points in the special case of the unit tangent bundle of a Riemannian manifold. We restrict ourselves to contactomorphisms of $SM$ that lift diffeomorphisms of $M$ homotopic to identity. We prove that there exist sequences $(p_n,t_n)$ where $p_n$ is a translated point of time-shift $t_n$ with $t_n\to+\infty$ for a large class of manifolds. We also prove Morse estimates on the number of translated points in the case of Zoll Riemannian manifolds.
Fix a $C^\infty$ principal $G$--bundle $E^0_G$ on a compact connected Riemann surface $X$, where $G$ is a connected complex reductive linear algebraic group. We consider the gradient flow of the Yang--Mills--Higgs functional on the cotangent bundle of the space of all smooth connections on $E^0_G$. We prove that this flow preserves the subset of Higgs $G$--bundles, and, furthermore, the flow emanating from any point of this subset has a limit. Given a Higgs $G$--bundle, we identify the limit point of the integral curve passing through it. These generalize the results of the second named author…
We discuss the Morse estimates for the curvature of several metrics on Semple weighted projective bundle over a projective variety. Following Demailly works on holomorphic Morse inequalities we show an analogue of his results along the Green-Griffiths conjecture for invariant jets.
Based on Morse theory for the energy functional on path spaces we develop a deformation theory for mapping spaces of spheres into orthogonal groups. This is used to show that these mapping spaces are weakly homotopy equivalent, in a stable range, to mapping spaces associated to orthogonal Clifford representations. Given an oriented Euclidean bundle $V \to X$ of rank divisible by four over a finite complex $X$ we derive a stable decomposition result for vector bundles over the sphere bundle $\mathord{\mathbb S}( \mathbb{R} \oplus V)$ in terms of vector bundles and Clifford module bundles over $…
We use Morse theory of the Yang-Mills functional to compute the Betti numbers of the moduli stack of flat U(3)-bundles over a compact nonorientable surface. Our result establishes the antiperfection conjecture of Ho-Liu, and provides evidence for the equivariant formality conjecture of the author.
In arXiv:math/0605587, the first two authors have constructed a gauge-equivariant Morse stratification on the space of connections on a principal U(n)-bundle over a connected, closed, nonorientable surface. This space can be identified with the real locus of the space of connections on the pullback of this bundle over the orientable double cover of this nonorientable surface. In this context, the normal bundles to the Morse strata are real vector bundles. We show that these bundles, and their associated homotopy orbit bundles, are orientable for any n when the nonorientable surface is not home…
We compare the higher analytic torsion of Bismut and Lott of a fibre bundle p: M -> B equipped with a flat vector bundle F -> M and a fibre-wise Morse function h on M with a higher torsion T that is constructed in terms of a families Thom-Smale complex associated to h and F, thereby extending previous joint work with Bismut. Under additional conditions on F, the torsion T is related to Igusa's higher Franz-Reidemeister torsion. As an application, we use the higher analytic torsion to detect infinite families of smooth bundles p_i: M -> B with diffeomorphic fibres that are homeomorphic but not …
Consider an action of a connected compact Lie group on a compact complex manifold $M$, and two equivariant vector bundles $L$ and $E$ on $M$, with $L$ of rank 1. The purpose of this paper is to establish holomorphic Morse inequalities à la Demailly for the invariant part of the Dolbeault cohomology of tensor powers of $L$ twisted by $E$. To do so, we define a moment map $μ$ by the Kostant formula and we define the reduction of $M$ under a natural hypothesis on $μ^{-1}(0)$. Our inequalities are given in term of the curvature of the bundle induced by $L$ on this reduction.
Using a certain well-posed ODE problem introduced by Shilnikov in the sixties, G. Minervini proved in his PhD thesis [17], among other things, the Harvey-Lawson Diagonal Theorem but without the restrictive tameness condition for Morse flows. Here we combine the same techniques with the ideas of Latschev in order to construct local resolutions for the flow of the graph of a section of a fiber bundle. This is endowed with a vertical vector field which is horizontally constant and Morse-Smale in every fiber. The resolution allows the removal of the tameness hypothesis from the homotopy formula in…
Given, in the Lagrangian torus fibration $R^4\to R^2$, a Lagrangian submanifold $L$, endowed with a trivial flat connection, the corresponding mirror object is constructed on the dual fibration by means of a family of Morse homologies associated to the generating function of $L$, and it is provided with a holomorphic structure. Morse homology, however, is not defined along the caustic $C$ of $L$ or along the bifurcation locus $B$, where the family does not satisfy the Morse-Smale condition. The holomorphic structure is extended to the subset $C\cup B$, except cusps, yielding the so called quan…
We consider an abstract compact orientable Cauchy-Riemann manifold endowed with a Cauchy-Riemann complex line bundle. We assume that the manifold satisfies condition Y(q) everywhere. In this paper we obtain a scaling upper-bound for the Szegö kernel on (0, q)-forms with values in the high tensor powers of the line bundle. This gives after integration weak Morse inequalities, analogues of the holomorphic Morse inequalities of Demailly. By a refined spectral analysis we obtain also strong Morse inequalities which we apply to the embedding of some convex-concave manifolds.
We prove a version of the Arnol'd conjecture for Lagrangian submanifolds of conformal symplectic manifolds: a Lagrangian $L$ which has non-zero Morse-Novikov homology for the restriction of the Lee form $β$ cannot be disjoined from itself by a $C^0$-small Hamiltonian isotopy. Furthermore for generic such isotopies the number of intersection points equals at least the sum of the free Betti numbers of the Morse-Novikov homology of $β$. We also give a short exposition of conformal symplectic geometry, aimed at readers who are familiar with (standard) symplectic or contact geometry.
We compute the Betti numbers of the moduli space of rank 3 parabolic Higgs bundles, using Morse theory. A key point is that certain critical submanifolds of the Morse function can be identified with moduli spaces of parabolic triples. These moduli spaces come in families depending on a real parameter and we study their variation with this parameter.
In this note, by using the Yang-Mills-Higgs flow, we show that semistable Higgs bundles with vanishing the first and second Chern numbers over compact Käher manifolds must admit a filtration whose quotients are Hermitian flat Higgs bundles.
In this paper, we study Higgs bundles on non-compact Hermitian manifolds. Under some assumptions for the underlying Hermitian manifolds which are not necessarily Kähler, we solve the Hermitian-Einstein equation on analytically stable Higgs bundles.
In this paper, using Donaldson's heat flow, we show that the semi-stability of a Higgs bundle over a compact Kähler manifold implies the existence of approximate Hermitian-Einstein structure on the Higgs bundle.
Using the Morse-theoretic methods introduced by Hitchin, we prove that the moduli space of $\SO_0(1,n)$-Higgs bundles when $n$ is odd has two connected components.
In this paper, we consider the gradient flow of the Yang-Mills-Higgs functional for Higgs pairs on a Hermitian vector bundle $(E, H_{0})$ over a compact Kähler manifold $(M, ω)$. We study the asymptotic behavior of the Yang-Mills-Higgs flow for Higgs pairs at infinity, and show that the limiting Higgs sheaf is isomorphic to the double dual of the graded Higgs sheaves associated to the Harder-Narasimhan-Seshadri filtration of the initial Higgs bundle.
In this paper, we consider the existence of approximate Hermitian-Einstein structure and the semi-stability on Higgs bundles over compact Gauduchon manifolds. By using the continuity method, we show that they are equivalent.
In this paper, we use the affine Hermitian-Yang-Mills flow to prove a generalized Donaldson-Uhlenbeck-Yau theorem on flat Higgs bundles over a class of non-compact affine Gauduchon manifolds.
We construct the Nahm transform for Higgs bundles over a Riemann surface of genus at least 2 as hyperholomorphic connections on the total space of the tangent bundle of its dual Jacobian.
In this paper, we study the existence of Poisson metrics on flat vector bundles over noncompact Riemannian manifolds and discuss related consequence, specially on the applications in Higgs bundles, towards generalizing Corlette-Donaldson-Hitchin-Simpson's nonabelian Hodge correspondence to noncompact Kähler manifolds setting.
In this paper we investigate the moduli space of parabolic Higgs bundles over a punctured Riemann surface with varying weights at the punctures. We show that the harmonic metric depends analytically on the weights and the stable Higgs bundle. This gives a Higgs bundle generalisation of a theorem of McOwen on the existence of hyperbolic cone metrics on a punctured surface within a given conformal class, and a generalisation of a theorem of Judge on the analytic parametrisation of these metrics.
On a complex manifold, a co-Higgs bundle is a holomorphic vector bundle with an endomorphism twisted by the tangent bundle. The notion of generalized holomorphic bundle in Hitchin's generalized geometry coincides with that of co-Higgs bundle when the generalized complex manifold is ordinary complex. Schwarzenberger's rank-2 vector bundle on the projective plane, constructed from a line bundle on the double cover CP^1 \times CP^1 \to CP^2, is naturally a co-Higgs bundle, with the twisted endomorphism, or "Higgs field", also descending from the double cover. Allowing the branch conic to vary, we…
We generalize the classical Beauville-Narasimhan-Ramanan correspondence to the case of parabolic Higgs bundles with regular singularities and Higgs $V$-bundles. Using this correspondence along with Bott-Morse theoretic techniques we provide an exact component count for moduli spaces of maximal parabolic $\text{Sp}\left( 2n,\mathbb{R} \right)$-Higgs bundles with fixed parabolic structure.
We introduce a class of Higgs bundles called cyclic which lie in the Hitchin component of representations of a compact Riemann surface into the split real form of a simple Lie group. We then prove that such a Higgs bundle is equivalent to a certain class of solutions to the affine Toda equations. We further explain this relationships in terms of lifts of harmonic maps.
We introduce Dolbeault cohomology valued characteristic classes of Higgs bundles over complex manifolds. Flat vector bundles have characteristic classes lying in odd degree de Rham cohomology and a theorem of Reznikov says that these must vanish in degrees three and higher over compact Kähler manifolds. We provide a simple and independent proof of Reznikov's result and show that our characteristic classes of Higgs bundles and the characteristic classes of flat vector bundles are compatible via the nonabelian Hodge theorem.
The purpose of this paper is to extend the Donaldson-Corlette theorem to the case of vector bundles over cell complexes. We define the notion of a vector bundle and a Higgs bundle over a complex, and describe the associated Betti, de Rham and Higgs moduli spaces. The main theorem is that the $SL(r, \mathbb{C})$ character variety of a finitely presented group $Γ$ is homeomorphic to the moduli space of rank $r$ Higgs bundles over an admissible complex $X$ with $π_1(X) = Γ$. A key role is played by the theory of harmonic maps defined on singular domains.
We prove a Hitchin-Kobayashi correspondence for extensions of Higgs bundles. The results generalize known results for extensions of holomorphic bundles. Using Simpson's methods, we construct moduli spaces of stable objects. In an appendix we construct Bott-Chern forms for Higgs bundles
We prove a gluing theorem for solutions of Hitchin's self-duality equations with logarithmic singularities on a rank-2 vector bundle over a noded Riemann surface representing a boundary point of Teichmüller moduli space.
We introduce some generalizations of the Hermitian-Einstein equation for diagonal harmonic metrics on cyclic Higgs bundles, including a generalization using subharmonic functions. When the coefficients are all smooth, we prove the existence, uniqueness, and convergence of the solution of their heat equations with Dirichlet boundary conditions. We also generalize two inequality estimates for solutions of the Hermitian-Einstein equation for cyclic Higgs bundles.
The Corlette-Donaldson-Hitchin-Simpson's correspondence states that, on a compact Kähler manifold $(X, ω)$, there is a one-to-one correspondence between the moduli space of semisimple flat complex vector bundles and the moduli space of poly-stable Higgs bundles with vanishing Chern numbers. In this paper, we extend this correspondence to the projectively flat bundles case. We prove that there is an equivalence of categories between the category of $ω$-semi-stable (poly-stable) Higgs bundles $(E, \overline{\partial}_{E}, ϕ)$ with $(2rc_{2}(E)-(r-1)c_{1}^{2}(E))\cdot [ω]^{n-2}=0 $ and the catego…
By studying the Higgs bundle equations with the gauge group replaced by the group of symplectic diffeomorphisms of the 2-sphere we encounter the notion of a folded hyperkaehler 4-manifold and conjecture the existence of a family of such metrics parametrised by an infinite-dimensional analogue of Teichmueller space.
We define homogeneous principal Higgs and co-Higgs bundles over irreducible Hermitian symmetric spaces of compact type. We provide a classification for each type of object up to isomorphism, which in each case can be interpreted as defining a moduli space.
The paper studies the locus in the rank 2 Higgs bundle moduli space corresponding to points which are critical for d of the Poisson commuting functions. These correspond to the Higgs field vanishing on a divisor of degree D. The degree D critical locus has an induced integrable system related to K(-D)-twisted Higgs bundles. Topological and differential-geometric properties of the critical loci are addressed.
We provide notions of numerical effectiveness and numerical flatness for Higgs vector bundles on compact Kähler manifolds in terms of fibre metrics. We prove several properties of bundles satisfying such conditions and in particular we show that numerically flat Higgs bundles have vanishing Chern classes, and that they admit filtrations whose quotients are stable flat Higgs bundles. We compare these definitions with those previously given in the case of projective varieties. Finally we study the relations between numerically effectiveness and semistability, establishing semistability criteria …
We prove the Kobayashi-Hitchin correspondence between good wild harmonic bundles and polystable good filtered $λ$-flat bundles satisfying a vanishing condition. We also study the correspondence for good wild harmonic bundles with the homogeneity with respect to a group action, which is expected to provide another way to construct Frobenius manifolds.
I consider principal Higgs bundles satisfying a notion of numerical flatness (H-nflatness) that was introduced by Bruzzo and Graña Otero. I prove that a principal Higgs bundle $\mathfrak{E}=(E,φ)$ is H-nflat is either stable or there exists a Higgs reduction of $\mathfrak{E}$ to a parabolic subgroup $P$ of $G$ such that the principal $L$-bundle $\mathfrak{E}_L$ obtained by extending the reduced Higgs bundle $\mathfrak{E}_P$ to the Levi factor $L$ is H-nflat and stable; and as consequence, $H^{*}(\mathfrak{E},\mathbb{R})$ is isomorphic to the cohomology ring of the associated graded object $\ma…
We define and study the existence of very stable Higgs bundles on Riemann surfaces, how it implies a precise formula for the multiplicity of the very stable components of the global nilpotent cone and its relationship to mirror symmetry. The main ingredients are the Bialynicki-Birula theory of ${\mathbb C}^*$-actions on semiprojective varieties, ${\mathbb C}^*$ characters of indices of ${\mathbb C}^*$-equivariant coherent sheaves, Hecke transformation for Higgs bundles, relative Fourier-Mukai transform along the Hitchin fibration, hyperholomorphic structures on universal bundles and cominuscul…
We construct a Petersson-Weil type Kähler form on the moduli spaces of Higgs bundles over a compact Kähler manifold. A fiber integral formula for this form is proved, from which it follows that the Petersson-Weil form is the curvature of a certain determinant line bundle, equipped with a Quillen metric, on the moduli space of Higgs bundles over a projective manifold. The curvature of the Petersson-Weil Kähler form is computed. We also show that, under certain assumptions, a moduli space of Higgs bundles supports of natural hyper-Kähler structure.
A principal Higgs bundle $(P,ϕ)$ over a singular curve $X$ is a pair consisting of a principal bundle $P$ and a morphism $ϕ:X\to\text{Ad}P \otimes Ω^1_X$. We construct the moduli space of principal Higgs G-bundles over an irreducible singular curve $X$ using the theory of decorated vector bundles. More precisely, given a faithful representation $ρ:G\to Sl(V)$ of $G$, we consider principal Higgs bundles as triples $(E,q,ϕ)$ where $E$ is a vector bundle with $\rk{E}=\dim V$ over the normalization $\xtilde$ of $X$, $q$ is a parabolic structure on $E$ and $ϕ:E\ab{}\to L$ is a morphism of bundles, …
Higgs bundles over a closed orientable surface can be defined for any real reductive Lie group G. In this paper we examine the case G=SO*(2n). We describe a rigidity phenomenon encountered in the case of maximal Toledo invariant. Using this and Morse theory in the moduli space of Higgs bundles, we show that the moduli space is connected in this maximal Toledo case. The Morse theory also allows us to show connectedness when the Toledo invariant is zero. The correspondence between Higgs bundles and surface group representations thus allows us to count the connected components with zero and maxim…
Let $X$ be a smooth projective variety over $\mathbb C$. We prove that a twisted Higgs vector bundle $(\calE\, ,θ)$ on $X$ admits an Einstein--Hermitian connection if and only if $(\calE\, ,θ)$ is polystable. A similar result for twisted vector bundles (no Higgs fields) was proved by S. Wang in \cite{Wa}. Our approach is simpler.
We establish a gluing construction for Higgs bundles over a connected sum of Riemann surfaces in terms of solutions to the $\text{Sp(4}\text{,}\mathbb{R}\text{)}$-Hitchin equations using the linearization of a relevant elliptic operator. The construction can be used to provide model Higgs bundles in all the $2g-3$ exceptional components of the maximal $\text{Sp(4}\text{,}\mathbb{R}\text{)}$-Higgs bundle moduli space, which correspond to components solely consisted of Zariski dense representations. This also allows a comparison between the invariants for maximal Higgs bundles and the topologica…
We prove the equivariant holomorphic Morse inequalities for a holomorphic torus action on a holomorphic vector bundle over a compact Kahler manifold when the fixed-point set is not necessarily discrete. Such inequalities bound the twisted Dolbeault cohomologies of the Kahler manifold in terms of those of the fixed-point set. We apply the inequalities to obtain relations of Hodge numbers of the connected components of the fixed-point set and the whole manifold. We also investigate the consequences in geometric quantization, especially in the context of symplectic cutting.
We explain how the generalized Milnor-Wood inequality for reductive representations of a cocompact complex-hyperbolic lattice into a Hermitian Lie group translates, under the non-abelian Hodge correspondence, into various kinds of Milnor-Wood inequalities for Higgs bundles. This clarifies the relation between the representation theoretic generalized Milnor-Wood inequality and the various different versions of Milnor-Wood inequalities for Higgs bundles that are known in the literature.
