A crossed module representing the Godbillon-Vey cocycle (Q1587209)

Let \(W_{1}\) be the Lie algebra of formal vector fields in one variable. Then the third cohomology of \(W_{1}\) with coefficients in \(\mathbb R\) is known to be one-dimensional, a generator being given by the so-called Godbillon-Vey cocycle, which leads to characteristic classes for codimension one foliations. The aim of this paper is to give explicit expressions for this and related cocycles in the interpretation of the third cohomology in terms of crossed modules. The author first reviews how the third cohomology \(H^{3}(\mathfrak g,V)\) of a Lie algebra \(\mathfrak g\) with coefficients in a module \(V\) can be interpreted in terms of equivalence classes of crossed modules or equivalently of four term exact sequences of Lie algebras starting with \(V\) and ending with \(\mathfrak g\). Denoting by \(F_{\lambda}\) the \(W_{1}\)-module of \(\lambda\)-densities, the author considers a simple two-cocycle on \(W_{1}\) with values in \(F_{1}\). The corresponding extension can be put together with the de Rham sequence to give a four term exact sequence, which is shown to represent the Godbillon-Vey class. Similar constructions for the algebras of vector fields on the circle and of holomorphic vector fields on a Riemann surface of genus at least one are presented.