Index in \(K\)-theory for families of fibred cusp operators (Q864986)

The index of families of fully-elliptic fibered-cusp pseudodifferential operators is studied from the perspective of \(K\) (and \(KK\)) theory. Let \(M\to B\) be a fibration over a closed manifold, with typical fiber \(Z\) a compact manifold with boundary. Assume that the boundary \(\partial M\) has another fibration (compatible with the first) modeled over \(\partial Z\to Y\). To this data a calculus of pseudodifferential operators called fibered-cusp is associated. When \(B\) is a point, one recovers the calculus introduced by the first author and \textit{R. Mazzeo} [Asian J. Math. 2, No. 4, 833--866 (1998; Zbl 1125.58304)]. Important particular cases are obtained for \(Z=Y\) and \(Y=\{{*}\}\), when one gets the so-called scattering, respectively, cusp calculi. The fibered-cusp calculus shares a common feature of Melrose's pseudodifferential calculi: besides the usual principal symbol, it has an additional operator-valued symbol map at infinity. Fredholmness of an operator is equivalent to the invertibility of both its symbols. A first result of the paper relates the analytic index \(K\)-theory class over \(B\) of a family of fully elliptic operators to a topological index, obtained by analogy with the Atiyah-Singer embedding into a ball. Secondly, the fibered-cusp \(K\)-theory group is shown to coincide with a natural \(KK\)-group. Thirdly, an index formula for Dirac-type operators is deduced, without any assumption on the kernels, but in terms of a choice of a spectral section. The proof of the index formula is indirect, based on an adiabatic limit procedure interpolating between the cusp and the fibered cusp settings. The authors need to construct another pseudodifferential calculus, called adiabatic fibered-cusp. This technical construction gives as a direct corollary the equality of the corresponding cusp and fibered-cusp indices. For the cusp calculus, previous results by the same authors [Int. Math. Res. Not. 2004, No. 22, 1115--1141 (2004; Zbl 1086.58011)] ensure that every family of elliptic cusp operators can be perturbed by smoothing cusp operators to an invertible family (this property does not hold for general fibered-cusp elliptic operators). This implies that the principal symbol map from fully elliptic to elliptic cusp operators is surjective. The index formula is then deduced in a manner analogous to \textit{M. F. Atiyah} and \textit{I. M. Singer} [Ann. Math. (2) 93, 119--138, 139--149 (1971; Zbl 0212.28603)].