Periods and nonvanishing of central \(L\)-values for \(\mathrm{GL}(2n)\) (Q1650036)

Suppose that \(E/F\) is a quadratic extension of number fields. Let \(D\) be a quaternion algebra over \(F\) into which \(E\) embeds, \(G_D=\mathrm{GL}_n(D)\), and \(G'=\mathrm{GL}_{2n}\). Then the Jacquet-Langlands correspondence attaches to each cuspidal automorphic representation \(\pi_D\) of \(G_D(\mathbb{A}_F)\) a representation \(\pi'\) of \(G'(\mathbb{A}_F)\). Let \(H=\mathrm{GL}_n(E)\) viewed as a subgroup of \(G_D\) and \(H'=\mathrm{GL}_n\times \mathrm{GL}_n\) viewed as a subgroup of \(G'\). A conjecture of Guo and Jacquet (see [\textit{J. Guo}, Can. J. Math. 48, No. 1, 105--142 (1996; Zbl 0852.11026)]) specifies a relationship between the non-vanishing of certain periods of \(\pi_D\) with respect to \(H\) and \(\pi'\) with respect to \(H'\). The nonvanishing of these periods is also related to the nonvanishing of the central \(L\)-value \(L(1/2,\pi'_E)\) of the base change \(\pi'_E\) of \(\pi'\) to \(\mathrm{GL}_{2n}(\mathbb{A}_E)\). This paper proves parts of the conjecture using a simple form of the relative trace formula, and also related local results. Here all representations are taken to be unitary with trivial central character and cuspidal. Suppose that \(E/F\) is split at all Archimedean places, and that \(\pi_D\) is supercuspidal at some split place of \(F\) and is \(H\)-elliptic at another place. Then the authors show that if \(\pi_D\) is \(H\)-distinguished then \(L(1/2,\pi_E')\neq 0\) and \(\pi'\) is of symplectic type (i.e.,\ \(L(s,\pi,\wedge^2)\) has a pole at \(s=1\)). They also establish a converse under certain hypotheses. Given two quaternion algebras \(D_1\) and \(D_2\) as above, even \(n\), cuspidal automorphic representations \(\pi_{D_1}\) of \(G_{D_1}\) and \(\pi_{D_2}\) of \(G_{D_2}\) with the same Jacquet-Langlands transfer, they show under certain conditions that if \(\pi_{D_1}\) is \(H\)-distinguished then so is \(\pi_{D_2}\). In addition, they establish local results, studying the Jacquet-Langlands transfer of a supercuspidal representation and relating it to being distinguished and to central epsilon-values. Their local results confirm in part a conjecture of \textit{D. Prasad} and \textit{R. Takloo-Bighash} [J. Reine Angew. Math. 655, 189--243 (2011; Zbl 1228.11070)]. The authors' approach makes use of the relative trace formula, building on the fundamental lemma for the unit element in the Hecke algebra established by Guo [loc. cit.]. They choose test functions that imply that both the spectral and the geometric sides converge. They also make use of Ramakrishnan's mild Tchebotarev result for \(\mathrm{GL}_n\) [\textit{D. Ramakrishnan}, J. Number Theory 146, 519--533 (2015; Zbl 1380.11066)]. Independently, \textit{C. Zhang} [Compos. Math. 151, No. 10, 1821--1877 (2015; Zbl 1329.11056)] proved smooth transfer of the local orbital integrals over non-Archimedean local fields. That result was not available when this paper was originally written. This work shows how one may obtain global results even without such a matching. The paper also contains a careful introduction explaining the connection to the prior work of the reviewer and \textit{H. Jacquet} [J. Reine Angew. Math. 443, 91--139 (1993; Zbl 0782.11033)] and of \textit{J. L. Waldspurger} [Compos. Math. 54, 173--242 (1985; Zbl 0567.10021)] and to the conjectures of Gan-Gross-Prasad [\textit{W. T. Gan} et al., Astérisque 346, 1--109 (2012; Zbl 1280.22019)].