Rationality of geometric signatures of complete 4-manifolds (Q1895692)

\textit{J. Cheeger} and \textit{M. Gromov} [J. Differ. Geom. 32, No. 1, 269-298 (1990; Zbl 0727.53043)] and \textit{J. Cheeger}, \textit{K. Fukaya} and \textit{M. Gromov} [J. Am. Math. Soc. 5, No. 2, 327-372 (1992; Zbl 0758.53022)] have shown that complete manifolds with bounded sectional curvature and finite volume admit positive rank \(F\)-structures near infinity. In this paper the author shows that in dimension 4, the manifolds possessing bounded covering geometry (BCG) near infinity possess \(F\)-structures with special topology properties. These properties are then used to prove a conjecture of Cheeger-Gromov on the rationality of geometric signatures in the four dimensional case: \textit{J. Cheeger} and \textit{M. Gromov} [Differential geometry and complex analysis, Vol. dedic. H. E. Rauch, 115-154 (1985; Zbl 0592.53036) and J. Differ. Geom. 21, 1-34 (1985; Zbl 0614.53034)] showed that if \(M^{2k}\) is a \(2k\)-dimensional complete manifold with finite volume and BCG near infinity, then the geometric Euler characteristic \(P_\chi (M^{2k}, g)\) is a homotopy invariant. If \(k = 2n\), then the geometric signature, \(P_L(M^{4n}, g)\) is a proper homotopy invariant. They conjectured that the geometrical signature of a complete \(4n\)-manifold with finite volume and BCG near infinity is rational. One of the two main results in this paper shows that this conjecture is true in dimension four. The paper reduces the rationality of the geometrical signature to the existence of an \(F\)-structure with special topological properties. The other main result concerns the existence of this type of \(F\)-structure: Suppose \(M^4\) is an open complete 4-manifold with \(|K|\leq 1\) and finite volume. Let \({\mathcal F}_a\) be an associated positive rank \(F\)-structure on \({\mathcal C} (i_4)\). Then: (a) There is a compact saturated subset \(M_p\), \({\mathcal B} (i_4) \subset M_p\), such that \({\mathcal F}_a |(M^4 \setminus M_p)\) has a polarized substructure; (b) Suppose \(M^4\) also has BCG on \(M^4 \setminus M_p\), then the polarized substructure can be chosen to be semi-injective in \(M^4 \setminus M_p\).