Cohomology of the Satake compactification (Q2266797)

Let \(S_ n\) denote the Satake compactification of the quotient of the Siegel upper half-space \(H_ n\) by \(Sp_ n({\mathbb{Z}})\). In this paper, it is shown that, if \(| W_ n|\) denotes the geometric realisation of a certain category \(W_ n\) recently described by Giffen, then there are maps \(| W_ n| \to S_ n\) (commuting with the inclusions \(| W_{n-1}| \to | W_ n|\) and \(S_{n-1}\to S_ n,)\) which induce isomorphisms on \(H_*(.,{\mathbb{Q}})\). Also, a theorem of Giffen, whose proof is given in an appendix, enables the authors to determine \(H^ i(W_ n,{\mathbb{Q}})\) explicitly for \(i\leq n-1\). - The category \(W_ n\) consists of pairs (P,\(\lambda)\), where P is a free \({\mathbb{Z}}\)-module of rank \(\leq 2n\), and \(\lambda\) is a non-degenerate skew-symmetric bilinear form on P; a morphism \((P,\lambda)\to (P',\lambda ')\) is a pair (L,\(\phi)\) where L is a \(\lambda\)-isotropic direct summand of P, and \(\phi:(L^{\perp}/L,\lambda)\to (P',\lambda ')\) is an isomorphism (\(\lambda\) clearly induces a non-degenerate form on \(L^{\perp}/L)\). The authors show that \(| W_ n|\) is obtained by glueing together K(\(\pi\),1)-spaces using the Tits-building of \(Sp_ n\). The theorem of Giffen mentioned above states that, if \(W=\cup W_ n\), then there is a rational homotopy fibration \(BGL({\mathbb{Z}})^+\to BS_ p({\mathbb{Z}})^+\to | W|,\) the first map being induced by the inclusion \(A\to \left( \begin{matrix} A\\ 0\end{matrix}^{0}_{^ tA^{-1}}\right)\) of \(GL_ n\) in \(Sp_ n\).