Spin\(^c\) structures on Hantzsche-Wendt manifolds (Q2666640)

The main result of the paper states that every Hantzsche-Wendt manifold of dimension greater than or equal to five does not admit a spin\(^{c}\) structure. Such a manifold is a quotient manifold \(X=\mathbb{R}^{n}/\Gamma\) where \(\Gamma\) is a Bieberbach group, i.e., a group defined by the short exact sequence \[0\longrightarrow \mathbb{Z}^{n}\stackrel{i}{\longrightarrow} \Gamma \stackrel{\pi}{\longrightarrow}G \longrightarrow 1 \] \noindent where \(i(\mathbb{Z}^{n})\) is the maximal abelian normal subgroup of \(\Gamma\), \(G\) is finite and coincides with the holonomy group of the manifold \(X\). A Hantzsche-Wendt (HW for short) manifold is flat, closed, odd-dimensional. It was known that three-dimensional HW manifolds admit a spin structure [\textit{R. C. Kirby}, The topology of 4-manifolds. Berlin etc.: Springer-Verlag (1989; Zbl 0668.57001)]. \textit{R. J. Miatello} and \textit{R. A. Podestá} [Trans. Am. Math. Soc. 358, No. 10, 4569--4603 (2006; Zbl 1094.58014)] proved that no other HW manifolds of higher dimensions do admit such structure. As the existence of a spin structure determines that of a spin\(^{c}\) structure, three dimensional HW manifolds admit a spin\(^{c}\) structure. For higher dimensions the present paper solves the question in a negative sense. The existence of a spin\(^{c}\) structure can be characterized by means of Stiefel-Whitney classes, which are used to prove the result.