Stability in the homology of congruence subgroups. (Q896255)

Let \(R\) be a ring with unit and let \(q\) be a 2-sided ideal of \(R\). Assume that \((R,q)\) satisfies the Bass' stable range condition \(SR_{d+2}\). For instance, this is the case if \(R\) is a commutative Noetherian ring of dimension \(d\). Fix \(k\geq 1\) and let \(\mathbb F\) be a field with either \(\text{char}(\mathbb F)=0\) or \(\text{char}(\mathbb F)\geq (d+8)2^{k-1}-3\). Then the main result is that the sequence of homology groups of congruence subgroups \[ H_k(\text{GL}_1(R,q);\mathbb F)\to H_k(\text{GL}_2(R,q);\mathbb F)\to H_k(\text{GL}_3(R,q);\mathbb F)\to\cdots \] is ``centrally stable'' with stability beginning at \((d+8)2^{k-1}-4\). To define these terms, consider a sequence \(V_1\to V_2\to\cdots\) where \(V_i\) is a representation of the symmetric group \(S_i\) and the maps \(V_i\to V_{i+1}\) are \(S_i\)-equivariant. For a representation \(V\) of \(S_n\), put \(\text{IA}_k(V)=\text{Ind}^{S_{n+k}}_{S_n\times S_k}(V\boxtimes\text{sgn})\). The cokernel of \(\text{IA}_2(V_n)\to\text{IA}_1(V_{n+1})\) is called the central stabilization of \(V_n\to V_{n+1}\). One requires that \(V_{n+1}\to V_{n+2}\) factors through the central stabilization of \(V_n\to V_{n+1}\) for all \(n\geq 1\). One says that \(V_1\to V_2\to\cdots\) is centrally stable starting at \(N\) if for \(n\geq N\) the central stabilization of \(V_{n-1}\to V_n\) is naturally isomorphic to \(V_{n+1}\). In other words, the main result is that the homology groups \(H_k(\text{GL}_n(R,q);\mathbb F)\) vary in a very predictable fashion from some point on. The author shows that under some reasonable conditions central stability implies representation stability in the sense of \textit{T. Church} and \textit{B. Farb} [Adv. Math. 245, 250-314 (2013; Zbl 1300.20051)]. To prove his main result he studies an equivariant homology spectral sequence converging (in a range) to \(H_*(\text{GL}_{N+1}(R,q);\mathbb F)\). It is closely related to the spectral sequence used by \textit{R. Charney} [Commun. Algebra 12, 2081-2123 (1984; Zbl 0542.20023)]. As usual one has to show that the spectral sequence collapses in a range. Here one encounters what the author calls an \(M\)-central stability chain complex \[ \text{IA}_{M-n}(V_n)\to\text{IA}_{M-n-1}(V_{n+1})\to\cdots\to\text{IA}_{M-m}(V_m). \] More specifically, taking \(V_j=H_i(\text{GL}_j(R,q);\mathbb F)\), one encounters a resulting \(M\)-central stability chain complex in the \(i\)-th row of the \(E^1\) page. The collapsing of the spectral sequence (in a range) corresponds with the vanishing of the homology of a few \(M\)-central stability chain complexes. Now a detailed representation theoretic analysis shows that the homology of an \(M\)-central stability chain complex vanishes if \(V_1\to V_2\to\cdots\) is centrally stable in a certain range. It is in the proof of this fact that the author needs restrictions on the characteristic of \(\mathbb F\). With all these ingredients the main result follows by induction on \(k\).