Skew divided difference operators and Schubert polynomials (Q2473472)

Schubert polynomials \({\mathfrak S}_w\), \(w\in S_n\), form a \(\mathbb Z\)-free basis of the factor ring of the polynomial ring \(P_n={\mathbb Z}[x_1,\ldots,x_n]\) modulo the ideal \(I_n\) generated by the symmetric polynomials without constant terms. The Littlewood-Richardson problem in the Schubert calculus is the problem of finding a combinatorial rule for computing the structural constants \(c_{uv}^w\), \(u,v,w \in S_n\), where \[ {\mathfrak S}_u{\mathfrak S}_v \equiv\sum_{w\in S_n}c_{uv}^w{\mathfrak S}_w \pmod{I_n}. \] In the paper under review the author studies the action of the skew divided difference operators \(\delta_{w\backslash v}\) on the Schubert polynomials and gives an explicit formula for \(c_{uv}^w\) in terms of certain weighted paths in the Bruhat order on \(S_n\). He makes the conjecture that \(\delta_{w\backslash u}{\mathfrak S}_v\) is a polynomial with nonnegative integer coefficients and proves it in special cases. Then the author finds the generating function of the structural constants \(c_{uv}^w\) in the nilCoxeter algebra. A list of open problems is also discussed.