Bilinear forms and the \(\mathrm{Ext}^2\)-problem in Banach spaces (Q1736242)

In category theory, the functor Ext is essentially the derived functor of the functor Hom, which may be better known to Banach space people as \(L\). In the category of Banach spaces, Ext\((X,Y)\) can be described in terms of equivalence classes of quasilinear maps \(X\to Y\). The derived functor of Ext is denoted Ext\(^2\). For Banach spaces, an interpretation of Ext\(^2\) in terms of concatenation is given in \S4. Deciding whether or not Ext\((X,Y)\) vanishes for specific \(X\) and \(Y\) is a subject with a long and fruitful history. Here, the corresponding question for Ext\(^2(X,Y)\) is examined in the special case \(Y=X^*\). Suppose that \(X\) is separable, with a projective representation \(0\to K\to\ell_1\to X\to0\). Then Ext\(^2(X,X^*)\) is given an interesting interpretation, as the last term in another short exact sequence \[0\to L(X,X^*)\to L(\ell_1,\ell_\infty)\to L(K,K^*)\to\mathrm{Ext}^2(X,X^*)\to0,\] thereby establishing a connection with bilinear forms. It is shown that, if \(K\) is an \(\mathcal{L}_1\)-space, then \(\mathrm{Ext}^2(X,X^*)=0\). On the other hand, if \(\mathrm{Ext}^2(X,X^*)=0\), but \(K\) is not an \(\mathcal{L}_1\)-space, then \(K\) fails to have an unconditional basis. (A result of \textit{W. Lusky} [Isr. J. Math. 107, 17-27 (1998; Zbl 0921.46010)] ensures that \(K\) must have a basis if \(X\) has one.) Some of the results here remain valid in the nonseparable situation.