The \(\zeta\)-determinant and the additivity of the \(\eta\)-invariant on the smooth, self-adjoint Grassmannian (Q1299958)

The \(\zeta\)-determinant of the Dirac operator \(D\) on a closed manifold is given by the formula \[ \text{ det}_\zeta D = e^{{i\pi\over 2}(\eta_D(0) -\zeta_{D^2}(0))}\cdot e^{-1/2\cdot(d/ds(\zeta_{D^2}(s))|_{s=0})} \] where \(\zeta_{D^2}(s)\) and \(\eta_D(s)\) are functions constructed from the eigenvalues of the Dirac operator. If we want to extend the definition of the \(\zeta\)-determinant to manifolds with boundary, then we have to assume certain boundary conditions. The boundary condition is given by an elliptic pseudodifferential operator \(R\) of order zero on the boundary, more precisely, the domain of the Dirac operator is the \(H^1\)-Sobolev-space of spinors whose restriction to the boundary is in the kernel of \(R\). The most common boundary condition is the spectral projection \(\Pi_\geq\) onto the space generated by the nonnegative eigenvalues of the Dirac operator on the boundary. Let \(Gr(D)\) be the Grassmannian of zero order pseudodifferential operators who conincide with \(\Pi_\geq\) up to operators of order \(-1\). The smooth, self-adjoint Grassmannian \(Gr_\infty^*(D)\) is a subset of \(P\in Gr(D)\) for which the Dirac operator is self-adjoint and \(P-\Pi_\geq\) has a smooth kernel. The author proves that \(\eta_D(s)\) and \(\zeta_{D^2}(s)\) are holomorphic functions in a neighborhood of \(s=0\) for the Dirac operator \(D\) with boundary conditions in \(Gr_\infty^*(D)\), and thus the \(\zeta\)-determinant is well-defined. He proves that \(\zeta_{D^2}(0)\) is constant on \(Gr_\infty^*(D)\) and that \(\eta_D(s)\) is holomorphic on the half-plane \(Re(s)>-1\). Furthermore, a generalized pasting formula for the \(\eta\)-invariant is proved. The results of the paper are used in the recent proof of the projective equality of the \(\zeta\)-determinant and the Quillen determinant on \(Gr_\infty^*(D)\).