Given a complex projective algebraic variety, write H(X) for its cohomology with complex coefficients and IH(X) for its Intersection cohomology. We first show that, under some fairly general conditions, the canonical map H(X)\to IH(X) is injective.
Now let Gr = G((z))/G[[z]] be the loop Grassmannian for a complex semisimple group G, and let X be the closure of a G[[z]]-orbit in Gr. We prove, using the general result above, a conjecture of D. Peterson describing the cohomology algebra H(X) in terms of the centralizer of the principal nilpotent in the Langlands dual of Lie(G).
In the last section we give a new "topological" proof of Kostant's theorem about the polynomial algebra of a semisimple Lie algebra, based on purity of the equivariant intersection cohomology groups of G[[z]]-orbits on Gr.
Let g be a complex semisimple Lie algebra and let G' be the Langlands dual group. We give a description of the cohomology algebra of an arbitrary spherical Schubert variety in the loop Grassmannian for G' as a quotient of the form Sym(g^e)/J. Here, J is an appropriate ideal in the symmetric algebra of g^e, the centralizer of a principal nilpotent in g. We also discuss a `topological' proof of Kostant's famous result on the structure of the polynomial algebra on g.
We prove that a conical symplectic variety with maximal weight 1 is isomorphic to one of the following: (i) an affine space with the standard symplectic form (ii) a nilpotent orbit closure of a complex semisimple Lie algebra with the Kirillov-Kostant form.
In the case of complex symplectic and orthogonal groups, we find $(\mathfrak{g}, K)-$modules with the property that their $K-$structure matches the structure of regular functions on the closures of nilpotent orbits. This establishes a version of the Orbit Method of Kirrilov-Kostant-Souriau as proposed by Vogan. In the process we give another proof of the classification of nilpotent orbits with normal closure in the Lie algebra of a classical group first established by Kraft-Procesi.
We show that for $p$small highest weight $λ$, 1) there is a $\Z_p$-integral version of the Bernstein-Gelfand-Gelfand complex, still a direct summand subcomplex of the standard complex for $V(λ)$ 2) Similarly, a $\Z_p$-integral (as well as a mod. p) version of Kostant formula holds true. This paper is a companion paper to the one by Mokrane-Tilouine (AG, subm. 12/12/00), where these results are requested.
In this paper we obtain various results about the geometry of nilpotent orbits. In particular, we obtain a better understanding of the Kostant-Sekiguchi correspondence and Kronheimer's instanton flow. We utilize the moment map of Ness and the SL(2)-orbit theorem from Hodge theory. The results of this paper are used in the proof of the Barbarsch-Vogan conjecture in math.RT/0005305 (Ann. of Math. (2) 151 (2000), no. 3, 1071-1118).
The minimal degeneration singularities in the affine Grassmannians of simple simply-laced algebraic groups are determined to be either Kleinian singularities of type A, or closures of minimal orbits in nilpotent cones. The singularities for non-simply-laced types are studied by intersection cohomology and equivariant Chow group methods.
The linear spaces that are fixed by a given nilpotent $n \times n$ matrix form a subvariety of the Grassmannian. We classify these varieties for small $n$. Mutiah, Weekes and Yacobi conjectured that their radical ideals are generated by certain linear forms known as shuffle equations. We prove this conjecture for $n \leq 7$, and we disprove it for $n=8$. The question remains open for nilpotent matrices arising from the affine Grassmannian.
We study the null fiber of a moment map related to dual pairs. We construct an equivariant resolution of singularities of the null fiber, and get conormal bundles of closed $ K_C $-orbits in the Lagrangian Grassmannian as the categorical quotient. The conormal bundles thus obtained turn out to be a resolution of singularities of the closure of nilpotent $ K_C $-orbits, which is a "quotient" of the resolution of the null fiber.
This is the first of a series of papers devoted to certain pairs of commuting nilpotent elements in a semisimple Lie algebra that enjoy quite remarkable properties and which are expected to play a major role in Representation theory. The properties of these pairs and their role is similar to those of the principal nilpotents. To any principal nilpotent pair we associate a two-parameter analogue of the Kostant partition function, and propose the corresponding two-parameter analogue of the weight multiplicity formula. In a different direction, each principal nilpotent pair gives rise to a harmon…
Given a reductive group G, Kostant and Kumar defined a nil Hecke algebra that may be viewed as a degenerate version of the double affine nil Hecke algebra introduced by Cherednik. In this paper, we construct an isomorphism of the spherical subalgebra of the nil Hecke algebra with a Whittaker type quantum Hamiltonian reduction of the algebra of differential operators on G. This result has an interpretation in terms of the geometric Satake and the Langlands dual group. Specifically, the isomorphism provides a bridge between very differently looking descriptions of equivariant Borel-Moore homolog…
We study, in type A, the algebraic cycles (MV-cycles) discovered by I. Mirković and K. Vilonen [MV]. In particular, we partition the loop Grassmannian into smooth pieces such that the MV-cycles are their closures. We explicitly describe the points in each piece using the lattice model of the loop Grassmannian in type A. The partition is invariant under the action of the coweights and, up to this action, the pieces are parametrized by the Kostant parameter set. This description of MV-cycles allows us to prove the main result of the paper: the computation of the moment map images of MV-cycles (M…
Quivers play an important role in the representation theory of algebras, with a key ingredient being the path algebra and the preprojective algebra. Quiver grassmannians are varieties of submodules of a fixed module of the path or preprojective algebra. In the current paper, we study these objects in detail. We show that the quiver grassmannians corresponding to submodules of certain injective modules are homeomorphic to the lagrangian quiver varieties of Nakajima which have been well studied in the context of geometric representation theory. We then refine this result by finding quiver grassm…
A contact structure on a complex manifold M is a corank 1 subbundle F of T(M) such that the bilinear form on F with values in the quotient line bundle L=T(M)/F deduced from the Lie bracket of vector fields is everywhere non-degenerate. In this paper we consider the case where M is a Fano manifold; this implies that L is ample. If g is a simple Lie algebra, the unique closed orbit in P(g) (for the adjoint action) is a Fano contact manifold; it is conjectured that every Fano contact manifold is obtained in this way. A positive answer would imply an analogous result for compact quaternion-Kahler …
Let $X_w$ be a Schubert subvariety of a cominuscule Grassmannian $X$, and let $μ:T^*X\rightarrow\mathcal N$ be the Springer map from the cotangent bundle of $X$ to the nilpotent cone $\mathcal N$. In this paper, we construct a resolution of singularities for the conormal variety $T^*_XX_w$ of $X_w$ in $X$. Further, for $X$ the usual or symplectic Grassmannian, we compute a system of equations defining $T^*_XX_w$ as a subvariety of the cotangent bundle $T^*X$ set-theoretically. This also yields a system of defining equations for the corresponding orbital varieties $μ(T^*_XX_w)$. Inspired by the…
In this paper, we shall prove that any two (projective) symplectic resolutions of a nilpotent orbit closure in a classical simple Lie algebra are connected by a finite sequence of diagrams which are locally trivial families of Mukai flops of type A or of type D. A Mukai flop of type A is the same as a stratified Mukai flop in our previous paper "Mukai flops and derived categories II". On the other hand, a Mukai flop of type D comes from a nilpotent orbit in so(2k). Let G^+ and G^- be two connected components of the orthogonal Grassmannian G_{iso}(k,2k). Then the closure of this orbit has two S…
There are two intriguing statements regarding the quantum cohomology of partial flag varieties. The first one relates quantum cohomology to the affinisation of Lie algebras and the homology of the affine Grassmannian, the second one connects it with the geometry of quiver varieties. The connection with the affine Grassmannian was first discussed in unpublished work of Peterson and subsequently proved by Lam and Shimozono. The second development is based on recent works of Nekrasov, Shatashvili and of Maulik, Okounkov relating the quantum cohomology of Nakajima varieties with integrable systems…
The purpose of this article is to set foundations for decomposition numbers of perverse sheaves, to give some methods to calculate them in simple cases, and to compute them concretely in two situations: for a simple (Kleinian) surface singularity, and for the closure of the minimal non-trivial orbit in a simple Lie algebra. This work has applications to modular representation theory, for Weyl groups using the nilpotent cone of the corresponding semisimple Lie algebra, and for reductive algebraic group schemes using the affine Grassmannian of the Langlands dual group.
The paper concerns a compactification of the isospectral varieties of nilpotent Toda lattices for real split simple Lie algebras. The compactification is obtained by taking the closure of unipotent group orbits in the flag manifolds. The unipotent group orbits are called the Peterson varieties and can be used in the complex case to describe the quantum cohomology of Grassmannian manifolds. We construct a chain complex based on a cell decomposition consisting of the subsystems of Toda lattices. Explicit formulae for the incidence numbers of the chain complex are found, and encoded in a graph co…
We establish equivalences of derived categories of the following 3 categories: (1) Principal block of representations of the quantum at a root of 1; (2) G-equivariant coherent sheaves on the Springer resolution; (3) Perverse sheaves on the loop Grassmannian for the Langlands dual group. The equivalence (1)-(2) is an `enhancement' of the known expression for quantum group cohomology in terms of nilpotent variety, due to Ginzburg-Kumar. The equivalence (2)-(3) is a step towards resolving an old mystery surrounding the existense of two completely different realizations of the affine Hecke algebra…
A classical and beautiful story in geometric representation theory is the construction by Springer of an action of the Weyl group on the cohomology of the fibres of the Springer resolution of the nilpotent cone. We establish a natural extension of Springer's theory to arbitrary symplectic resolutions of conical symplectic singularities. We analyse features of the action in the case of affine quiver varieties, constructing Weyl group actions on the cohomology of $ADE$ quiver varieties, and also consider "symplectically dual" examples arising from slices in the affine Grassmannian. Along the way…
Let G be a simple and simply-connected complex algebraic group, and let X \subset G^\vee be the centralizer subgroup of a principal nilpotent element. Ginzburg and Peterson independently related the ring of functions on X with the homology ring of the affine Grassmannian Gr_G. Peterson furthermore connected this ring to the quantum cohomology rings of partial flag varieties G/P. The first aim of this paper is to study three different notions of positivity on X: (1) Schubert positivity arising via Peterson's work, (2) total positivity in the sense of Lusztig, and (3) Mirkovic-Vilonen positivity…
Tevelev has given a remarkable explicit formula for the discriminant of a complex simple Lie algebra, which can be defined as the equation of the dual hypersurface of the minimal nilpotent orbit, or of the so-called adjoint variety. In this paper we extend this formula to the setting of graded Lie algebras, and express the equation of the corresponding dual hypersurfaces in terms of the reflections in the little Weyl groups, the associated complex reflection groups. This explains for example why the codegree of the Grassmannian $G(4, 8)$ is equal to the number of roots of $\mathfrak{e}_7$ .
For a simple algebraic group $G$ we study the space $Q$ of Quasimaps from the projective line $C$ to the flag variety of $G$. We prove that the global Intersection Cohomology of $Q$ carries a natural pure Tate Hodge structure, and compute its generating function. We define an action of the Langlands dual Lie algebra $g^L$ on this cohomology. We present a new geometric construction of the universal enveloping algebra $U(n^L_+)$ of the nilpotent subalgebra of $g^L$. It is realized in the Ext-groups of certain perverse sheaves on Quasimaps' spaces, and it is equipped with a canonical basis number…
