On the map of Bökstedt-Madsen from the cobordism category to \(A\)-theory (Q390350)

This elegant paper synthesizes a number of threads in the modern algebraic topology of manifolds, providing a very nice link between the work of Dwyer, Weiss, and Williams on \(A\)-theory Euler characteristics and the work of Bökstedt and Madsen on cobordism categories. Let \(p:E \to B\) be a smooth fiber bundle with fibers compact smooth manifolds of dimension \(d\). Then \textit{W. Dwyer} et al. [Acta Math. 190, No. 1, 1--104 (2003; Zbl 1077.19002)] construct an Euler characteristic for \(p\) as a section of the fibration \(A_B(E) \to B\) from relative Waldhausen \(A\)-theory to \(B\). If we let \(E \to BO(d)\) classify the relative tangent bundle of \(p\), then are maps \[ B \to \Omega^\infty\Sigma^\infty (E_+) \to \Omega^\infty\Sigma^\infty (BO(d)_+) \to A(BO(d)). \] where the first map is given by the Becker-Gottlieb transfer. By smooth the Riemann-Roch Theorem the composition of these maps agrees, up to homotopy, with the composition of the composition of \[ B \to A_B(E) \to A(BO(d)). \] Now let \(M\) be a fixed smooth \(d\)-dimensional manifold and let \(p\) be the universal fibration \(E\mathrm{Diff}(M) \to B\mathrm{Diff}(M)\). Let \(\mathcal{C}_d\) be the embedded \(d\)-dimensional cobordism category of \textit{S. Galatius} et al. [Acta Math. 202, No. 2, 195--239 (2009; Zbl 1221.57039)]. Choosing an embedding of \(M\) in some large dimensional Euclidean space defines a map, independent of the choices, \(B\mathrm{Diff}(M) \to \Omega B\mathcal{C}_d\). \textit{M. Bökstedt} and \textit{I. Madsen} [``The cobordism category and Waldahusen's \(K\)-theory'', preprint, \url{arXiv:1102.415}] define a map \(\Omega B\mathcal{C}_d \to A(BO(d))\). Thus we now have two maps \(B\mathrm{Diff}(M) \to A(BO(d))\), one factoring through \(\Omega^\infty\Sigma^\infty (BO(d)_+)\) and the other through \(B\mathcal{C}_d\). The aim of this paper is for prove two things: first, these two maps agree up to homotopy and, second, the map \(B\mathcal{C}_d \to A(BO(d))\) factors through \(\Omega^\infty\Sigma^\infty (BO(d)_+)\). They also spell out various refinements of these results. As authors point out, this ratifies an intuition of Bökstedt and Madsen, who first raised these questions and strongly suggested they should be true.