Chain polynomials of distributive lattices are 75\% unimodal (Q1773214)

Since the fall of the unrestricted Neggers-Stanley conjecture its strength in various incarnations has left a residue of descendants which have stimulated activity in the area, i.e., unimodality of certain polynomials associated with certain classes of posets, as well as real-rootedness of such polynomials, the two not always being equivalent as shown in the counterexamples obtained. In this paper it is shown that the number \(c_i\) of chains of length \(i\) in the proper part of a distributive lattice \(L\) of length \(d+ 1\) satisfy the inequalities: \[ C_0<\cdots< C_{\lfloor{d-1\over 2}\rfloor}\quad\text{and}\quad C_{\lfloor{3(d-1)\over 4}\rfloor}>\cdots> C_{d-1}, \] by means of an analysis of the behavior of \(f\)-vectors and \(h\)-vectors as well as some insightful conclusions based on properties known and new of simplicial complexes as usually associated with posets. This is then presented as ``general information'', indicating possible directions to pursue in the ``program'' mentioned above, to determine the precise boundaries of conjectures as well as relations among them.