Transverse measures, the modular class and a cohomology pairing for Lie algebroids (Q4935763)

For any Lie algebroid \(A\) over a manifold \(P\) [see \textit{I. Vaisman}, ``Lectures on the geometry of Poisson manifolds'' (1994; Zbl 0810.53019) and \textit{A. Weinstein}, J. Geom. Phys. 23, No. 3-4, 379-394 (1997; Zbl 0902.58013)], a representation of \(A\) on the line bundle \(Q_A= \wedge^{\text{top}} A\otimes \wedge^{\text{top}}T^*P\) is constructed. In the case when \(A\) is the sub-bundle of \(TP\) tangent to a foliation \({\mathcal F}\), sections of \(Q_A\) are the transverse measures to \({\mathcal F}\), by analogy with the top exterior power of Bott connection. Two applications are proposed: 1) Every representation of \(A\) on a line bundle defines a `characteristic class' in the first Lie algebroid cohomology of \(A\) with trivial coefficients. For the representation on \(Q_A\) we get the modular class of \(A\). When \(A\) is the cotangent bundle Lie algebroid \(T^*P\) of a Poisson manifold \(P\) we get the representation of \(A\) on the `square root' \(\wedge^{\text{top}}T^*P\) of \(Q_A\). The corresponding characteristic class of \(A\) is then the modular class of the Poisson structure, and the Poisson homology is isomorphic to the Lie algebroid cohomology of \(A=T^*P\) with coefficients in \(\wedge^{\text{top}} T^*P\). 2) A pairing between the Lie algebroid cohomology spaces of \(A\) with trivial coefficients and with coefficients in \(Q_A\), like the Poincaré duality for Lie algebra cohomology and de Rham cohomology, is established.