Zonotopal subdivisions of cyclic zonotopes (Q5948674)

Let \({\mathcal Z}(n,d)\) be a cyclic zonotope in \(\mathbb{R}^d\) with \(n\) generating line segments. The following results are proved. (i): The refinement poset of all proper zonotopal subdivisions (tilings) of \({\mathcal Z} (n,d)\) which are induced by the canonical projection \(\pi:{\mathcal Z}(n,d')\to{\mathcal Z}(n,d)\), in the sense of \textit{L. J. Billera} and \textit{B. Sturmfels} [Ann. Math. 135, 527-549 (1992; Zbl 0762.52003)], is homotopy equivalent to a sphere. (ii): All zonotopal subdivisions of a cyclic zonotope are (visibly) shellable. Statement (i) gives an affirmative answer to the generalized Baues problem [see \textit{L. J. Billera}, \textit{M. M. Kapranov} and \textit{B. Sturmfels}, Proc. Am. Math. Soc. 122, 549-555 (1994; Zbl 0812.52007)] in a new special case and refines a theorem of \textit{B. Sturmfels} and \textit{G. M. Ziegler} [Discrete Comp. Geom. 10, 23-45 (1993; Zbl 0783.52009)] on the extension space of an alternating oriented matroid. As the author remarks, the second statement suggests the question whether there exists a (general) zonotope which admits a non-shellable zonotopal subdivision. An important ingredient in the proofs is the fact (iii) that all zonotopal subdivisions of \({\mathcal Z}(n,d)\) are stackable in a suitable direction if and only if a certain associated matroid program is Euclidean, in the sense of J. Edmonds and \textit{A. Mandel} [Topology of oriented matroids, PhD thesis, University of Waterloo (1982)].