\(K\)-orbit closures on \(G/B\) as universal degeneracy loci for flagged vector bundles with symmetric or skew-symmetric bilinear form (Q2377148)

Let \(G/B\) be the complete flag variety for \(G=\mathrm{GL}_n(C)\), and let \(K\subset G\) be either \(\mathrm{Sp}_n(\mathbb C)\) (for even \(n\)) or \(O_n(\mathbb C)\). The author extends several classical results on Schubert varieties (=closures of \(B\)-orbits) to the closures of \(K\)-orbits (under the left action of \(K\) on \(G/B\)). He obtains recursive formulas for \(S\)-equivariant cohomology classes of such orbit closures in \(H^*_S(G/B)\) where \(S\) is a maximal torus of \(K\). The main tools are divided difference operators and equivariant localization to \(S\)-fixed points. The author also uses that \(\mathrm{Sp}_n(\mathbb C)\) and \(\mathrm{O}_n(\mathbb C)\) are symmetric subgroups of \(\mathrm{GL}_n(\mathbb C)\), and hence, their orbits can be described combinatorially using results of [\textit{R. W. Richardson} and \textit{T. A. Springer}, Geom. Dedicata 35, No. 1--3, 389--436 (1990; Zbl 0704.20039)]. The author interprets formulas for classes of orbit closures in \(H^*_S(G/B)\) as formulas for the following degeneracy loci. Let \(V\to X\) be a rank \(n\) vector bundle over a smooth complex variety \(X\) endowed with a complete flag of subbundles \(F_\bullet=(F_1\subset F_2\subset\ldots\subset F_{n-1}\subset V)\). Furthermore, let \(\gamma \) be a non-degenerate symmetric or skew-symmetric bilinear form on \(V\) with the values in the trivial bundle. For every involution \(b\in S_n\) (assumed fixed point-free if \(\gamma\) is skew-symmetric), define the degeneracy locus \[ D_b=\{x\in X\;|\;\mathrm{rank}(\gamma|_{F_i(x)\times F_j(x)})\leq r_b(i,j) \;\forall i,j \}, \] where \(r_b(i,j)\) is a nonnegative integer that depends on \(b\), \(i\) and \(j\). The author describes a recursive procedure for expressing \([D_b]\in H^*(X)\) as a polynomial in the first Chern classes of line bundles \(F_i/F_{i-1}\) for \(i=1,\ldots,n\). This result is motivated by \textit{W. Fulton} [Duke Math. J. 65, No. 3, 381--420 (1992; Zbl 0788.14044)].