Orbit configuration spaces of small covers and quasi-toric manifolds (Q829117)

For a given \(G\)-space \(M\), \(F_G(M,k)\) denotes \textit{the ordered orbit configuration space} of \(k\) particles in \(M\) without collisions, i.e., \(F_G(M,k)=\{(x_1,\ldots,x_k)\in M^k:~G(x_i)\cap G(x_j)= \varnothing \text{ for } i\neq j\}\), where \(k\geq 2\) and \(G(x)\) denotes the orbit of \(x\). In the case where \(G\) acts trivially on \(M\), the space \(F_G(M,k)\) is the classical configuration space denoted by \(F(M,k)\). In this paper, the authors study the non-free orbit configuration space \(F_{G^n_d}(M,k)\) for a \(dn\)-dimensional \(G^n_d\)-manifold \(\pi_d:M\to P\) over a simple convex \(n\)-polytope \(P\), \(d=1,2\), where \(M\) is a small cover and \(G^n_1=\mathbb{Z}^n_2\) when \(d=1\), and a quasi-toric manifold and \(G^n_2=T^n\) when \(d=2\). The main results in the present article are as follows. Let \(\text{h}_P(t)=h_0+h_1t+\cdots+h_nt^n\) be the polynomial in \(\mathbb{Z}[t]\) associated with the \(h\)-vector of a simple convex polytope \(P\). Let \((k_1,\ldots,k_s)\vdash k\) denote that \((k_1,\ldots,k_s)\) is a partition of the integer \(k\). \textbf{Theorem 1.1.} Let \(\pi_d:M\to P\) be a \(dn\)-dimensional \(G^n_d\)-manifold over a simple convex \(n\)-polytope \(P\), where \(d=1,2\). Then the Euler characteristic of \(F_{G^n_d}(M,k)\) is \[ \chi(F_{G^n_d}(M,k))=\begin{cases} (-1)^{kn}\displaystyle{\sum_{I=(k_1,\ldots,k_s)\vdash k} C_I\prod_{i=1}^s\text{h}_P(1-2^{k_i})},& \hbox{ if \(d=1\),}\\ \chi(F(M,k))=\displaystyle{\sum_{I=(k_1,\ldots,k_s)\vdash k} C_I(\text{h}_P(1))^s},& \hbox{ if \(d=2\),} \end{cases} \] where \(I=(k_1,\ldots,k_s)\) runs over all partitions of \(k\), \(C_I=\dfrac{k!(-1)^{k-s}}{r_1!r_2!\cdots r_s!k_1k_2\cdots k_s}\) and \(r_i\) is the number of times \(k_i\) appears in \(I\). \textbf{Theorem 1.2.} Let \(M\) be a compact triangulated homology \(n\)-manifold. Then \[ \chi(F(M,k))=(-1)^{kn}\displaystyle{\prod_{i=0}^{k-1}\left(\chi(M)-i\right)=(-1)^{kn}k!\binom{\chi(M)}{k}}. \] \textbf{Theorem 1.4.} Let \(\pi_d:M\to P\) be a \(d\)-dimensional \(G^1_d\)-manifold over \(P\), where \(P\) is a \(1\)-dimensional polytope. Then, when \(d=1\), \(F_{\mathbb{Z}_2}(M,k)\) has the same homotopy type as \(k!2^{k-2}\) points, and when \(d=2\), \(F_{S^1}(M,k)\) has the same homotopy type as a disjoint union of \(k!\) copies of \(T^{k-2}\). \textbf{Theorem 1.6.} Let \(\pi_d:M\to P\) be a \(dn\)-dimensional \(G^n_d\)-manifold over a simple convex polytope \(P\). Then there is an equivariant strong deformation retraction of \(F_{G^n_d}(M,2)\) onto \[ X_d(M)=\displaystyle{\bigcup_{\substack{F_1,F_2\in\mathcal{F}(P)\\ F_1\cap F_2=\varnothing}}\left(\pi_d^{-1}\right)^{\times 2}(F_1\times F_2)}, \] where \(\mathcal{F}(P)\) is the set of all faces of \(P\). Furthermore, the authors compute the integer homology of \(F_{T^n}(M,2)\) (Theorem 1.8.) and \(F_{G_d^2}(M,2)\) (Section 6), and the (mod 2) homology of \(F_{G_d^n}(M,2)\) for the \(G_d^n\)-manifold \(M\) over an \(n\)-simplex (Section 6).