Perverse sheaves, Koszul IC-modules, and the quiver for the category \(\mathcal{O}\) (Q863432): Difference between revisions

Over the past twenty years, one of the central problems in the theory of perverse sheaves has been to construct suitable derived-category-free models for these objects. In the meantime, there exists quite a number of such models, including \({\mathcal D}\)-modules, the glueing constructions of A. Beilinson and of R. MacPherson and K. Vilonen, the so-called quiver representations of S. Gelfand and R. MacPherson and K. Vilonen and of T. Braden and M. Grinberg, as well as various other approaches. In the paper under review, the author proposes another, comparatively elementary construction of a derived-category-free model of the category of constructible perverse sheaves, which is motivated by MacPherson's concept of cellular perverse sheaves, \textit{W. Soergel}'s studies of the Bernstein-Gelfand-Gelfand (BGG) category \({\mathcal O}\) [in: Algebra - representation theory. Proc. NATO Advanced Study Institute, Constanta, Romania 2000. NATO Sci. Ser. II, Math. Phys. Chem. 28, 379--414 (2001; Zbl 1001.22010)], and \textit{L. Saper's} framework of \({\mathcal L}\)-modules [cf.: \({\mathcal L}\)-modules and micro-support, preprint, 2001, \texttt{math.RT/0112251}]. More precisely, for any stratified topological space \(X\) equipped with a sheaf of rings and with a fixed perversity function, he constructs a certain IC-sheaf (à la Beilinson-Bernstein-Deligne Goresky-MacPherson), with the aid of which the concept of a (mixed) IC-module is established. These IC-modules are shown to form an abelian category \({\mathcal A}_S(X)\) (or \({\mathcal A}^{\text{mixed}}_S(X)\), respectively), where \(S\) denotes the given stratification (with contractible strata) on the topological base space \(X\), and these categories are then investigated as linear algebra devices representing derived-category-free models of the category of constructible (mixed) perverse sheaves. The significance of this novel concept of IC-modules becomes evident from the author's main result proved in the present paper, which states that the category of Schubert-constructible perverse sheaves on a flag variety is equivalent to the category \({\mathcal A}_S(X)\) of IC-modules, and that the total complex of an IC-module exactly calculates the hypercohomology of the corresponding perverse sheaf. Moreover, it is shown how this approach can be used to develop an explicit, computer-executable algorithm calculating the quiver underlying the BGG category \({\mathcal O}\) for an arbitrary simple Lie algebra, thus finally answering a long-standing question once raised by I. M. Gelfand. Finally, the author points out how his construction of IC-modules could possibly be applied to other related subjects, too, including the study of Harish-Chandra modules, the geometric Langlands program, the geometry of toric varieties and affine Grassmannians, the cohomology of locally symmetric spaces, and further geometric-combinatorial problems. In an appendix to the present paper, the effectivity of the author's explicit quiver algorithm is illustrated by a concrete example, thereby refining a previous algorithm due to \textit{C. Stroppel} [Represent. Theory 7, 322--345 (2003; Zbl 1050.17005)].