Colorings of simplicial complexes and vector bundles over Davis-Januszkiewicz spaces (Q5962176)

Let \(K\) be a finite simplicial complex. An \textit{\(r\)-coloring} of \(K\) is a nondegenerate simplicial map from \(K\) to the simplicial complex consisting of all subsets of \(\{ 1, \dots, r \}\). The \textit{Davis--Januszkiewicz spaces} associated to \(K\) are a family of homotopy equivalent spaces whose integral cohomology is isomorphic to the associated Stanley--Reisner algebra \(\mathbb{Z}[K]\). These spaces, equipped with a specific complex vector bundle \(\lambda\), were constructed in \textit{M. Davis} and \textit{T. Januszkiewicz} [Duke Math. J. 62, 417--451 (1991; Zbl 0733.52006)], where it was in addition shown that if \(K\) is the dual of the boundary of a polytope of dimension \(n\) and admits an \(n\)-coloring, then \(\lambda\) splits into the direct sum of \(n\) complex line bundles and a trivial bundle. Here, the author generalizes this result to show that an arbitrary finite simplicial complex \(K\) admits an \(r\)-coloring if and only \(\lambda\) splits into a direct sum of \(r\) complex line bundles and a trivial complex bundle, and similarly if and only if the realification of \(\lambda\) splits into the direct sum of \(r\) \(2\)-dimensional real bundles and a trivial bundle. As a corollary, it is shown that if \(K\) is the dual to the boundary of a polytope \(P\) given by the orbit space of a hypertoric manifold, and if the tangent bundle of \(M\) is stably equivariantly isomorphic to a direct sum of \(r\) \(2\)-dimensional equivariant bundles over \(M\), then \(K\) admits an \(r\)-coloring.