The topology of the space of stable bundles on a compact Riemann surface (Q1204219)

At the origin of this comprehensive paper lies the theory by \textit{G. Harder} and \textit{M. S. Narasimhan} [Math. Ann. 212, 215-248 (1975; Zbl 0324.14006)] on the computation of the cohomology of the moduli space of semistable bundles over a curve. \textit{M. F. Atiyah} and \textit{R. Bott} [Philos. Trans. R. Soc. Lond., A 308, 523-615 (1983; Zbl 0509.14014)] examined the same problem by transcendental methods. The last authors use the stratification directly to compute cohomology, leaving the connection with Morse theory only at a conjectural level. The main aim of this paper is to justify the Atiyah-Bott conjecture about the existence of a Morse theory for the Yang-Mills functional and to examine its relationship with algebraic methods. The paper is interesting, yet the reader must be familiar with the methods of algebraic geometry and modern differential geometry.