No label defined (Q4549536)

Let \(\alpha\) and \(\beta\) be real vector bundles of dimension \(a\) and \(b\) respectively over a closed smooth \(n\)-manifold \(N\). A monomorphism \(u:\alpha\hookrightarrow \beta\) is called antipodal if it can be deformed continuously through monomorphisms into its negative \(-u\). And also the pair \((\alpha,\beta)\) is called antipodal if all monomorphisms \(u:\alpha \hookrightarrow \beta\) are antipodal. The authors consider under which conditions a monomorphism \(u:\alpha \hookrightarrow \beta\) becomes antipodal and how many antipodal monomorphisms \(\alpha \hookrightarrow \beta\) there are. Especially the authors lay emphasis on studying antipodality criteria for the pair \((\alpha,\beta)\). It is proved for example the following: Assume that \(\beta\) is weakly antipodal (i.e., \(b\) is even and all odd dimensional Stiefel-Whitney classes \(w_{2i+1}(\beta)\), \(i\geq 0\), vanish). Then the pair \((\alpha,\beta)\) is antipodal if \(n\leq \min(b-a+3, 2(b-a)-2)\) and if there exists any antipodal monomorphism \(\alpha \hookrightarrow \beta\) (Theorem 1.10). There are of course a number of other results, but they are rather long to be described here. These are established in terms both of normal bordism theory and of classical characteristic classes. Furthermore the paper contains three nice examples (Example 1.15 and Special examples 1.17, 1.18) which exhibit some of what the theorems given assert. For example, these show that in fact it can happen that all monomorphisms \(\alpha \hookrightarrow \beta\) are (non-)antipodal, there are an infinite number both of antipodal and of non-antipodal monomorphisms and suchlike. The proofs use several results in four earlier papers by the first author. In particular they are based on an antipodality criterion (Theorem 1.4) given in [\textit{U. Koschorke}, Antipodal vector bundle monomorphisms, Isr. J. Math. 127, 29-59 (2002; Zbl 1005.55004)]. For the entire collection see [Zbl 0979.00028].