A higher index theorem for foliated manifolds with boundary (Q765732)

The index of the Dirac operator on a compact spin manifold \(M\) without boundary twisted with an auxiliary bundle \(E\) is given by the Atiyah-Singer formula as the integral on \(M\) of the \(\hat{A}\) class times the Chern character of \(E\). For a family of such operators, the Chern character of the index class in \(K\)-theory is the fiberwise integral of the fiberwise \(\hat{A}\)-form times the Chern character of \(E\). When the fibers are compact with boundary, the index formula develops a boundary term, namely the fiberwise integral of the eta form [\textit{R. Melrose} and \textit{P. Piazza}, J. Differ. Geom. 46, No. 2, 287--334 (1997; Zbl 0920.58053)]. A family of manifolds with boundary can be viewed as a foliation with compact fibers. In the present paper a similar result is proved for foliations on compact manifolds with boundary, whose leaves are also manifolds with boundary. The Riemannian metric on the total space is assumed to be of product type near the boundary. Moreover each Dirac operator on the boundary leaves is assumed to be invertible (this assumption is absent in the setting of Melrose-Piazza). Additional assumptions are the existence of a holonomy-invariant closed current \(\rho\) on the foliation, and a condition of polynomial growth for the leaves and the holonomy of the foliation. With these assumptions, the evaluation by \(\rho\) of the Chern character of the family of longitudinal Dirac operators twisted by \(E\) is shown to be given by evaluating \(\rho\) on the bulk, respectively on the eta form. The proof makes heavy use of Melrose's \(b\)-calculus. When the foliation carries a holonomy invariant measure, the numerical index theorem for foliations without boundary was proved by Connes, and extended to foliations with boundary by \textit{M.~Ramachandran} [J. Differ. Geom. 38, No. 2, 315--349 (1993; Zbl 0787.58040)]. The author's result is therefore a ``higher index theorem'' compared to Ramachandran's, as it involves the full Chern character of the index class.