The puzzle conjecture for the cohomology of two-step flag manifolds (Q2520759)

The authors study the cohomology ring of any two step flag variety of type \(A\) combinatorially. The main result of the paper establishes a conjecture of \textit{A. Knutson} [``A conjectural rule for \(\mathrm{GL}_n\) Schubert calculus'', Preprint] asserting that the structure constants in the Schubert basis for the cup product in any two step flag variety of type \(A\) are equal to the number of certain puzzles with specified border labels built only from a list of eight puzzle pieces. Thus, by a result of the first author et al. [J. Am. Math. Soc. 16, No. 4, 901--915 (2003; Zbl 1063.53090)] identifying the structure constants for the cup product of a two step flag variety of type \(A\) with the structure constants for the product in small quantum cohomology of \(A\)-type Grassmannians, one gets the same combinatorial rule for the later. One of the important ingredient in their proof is to show that the puzzle rule defines an associative ring. Recall that \textit{I. Coskun} [Invent. Math. 176, No. 2, 325--395 (2009; Zbl 1213.14088)] proved another positive formula for the structure constants for the cup product in any two step flag variety of type \(A\), though his formula did not establish Knutson's conjecture [loc. cit.]. Also, recall that \textit{A. Knutson} and \textit{K. Purbhoo} [Electron. J. Comb. 18, No. 1, Research Paper P76, 20 p. (2011; Zbl 1232.05239)] established a combinatorial formula in terms of puzzles for the product given by \textit{P. Belkale} and \textit{S. Kumar} [Invent. Math. 166, No. 1, 185--228 (2006; Zbl 1106.14037)] in the cohomology of \(\mathrm{SL}(n)/P\) for any parabolic \(P\) (not merely two step flag varieties).