The integral Pontrjagin homology of the based loop space on a flag manifold (Q987167)

In this article the authors provide a complete calculation of the integral Pontrjagin cohomology ring of \(\Omega (G/T)\) of a flag manifold \(G/T\), where \(G\) is a compact connected Lie group of the list \(SU(n), Sp(n), SO(n), G_2, F_4, E_6\) and \(T\) is a maximal torus of \(G\). Using formality of the flag manifold \(G/T\) and its rational cohomology the authors construct a minimal model for \(G/T\) in the sense of rational homotopy and deduce the rational homology of the based loop space \(\Omega(G/T)\). As \(\Omega(G/T)\) is homotopy equivalent to the product space \(\Omega(G) \times T\) it follows that the integral homology \(H_*(\Omega(G/T), \mathbb Z)\) is torsion free and the authors then detect the homology \(H_*(\Omega(G/T), \mathbb Z)\) inside the rational homology \(H_*(\Omega(G/T), \mathbb Q)\), which allows for the explicit calculations in the cases of the above list including the Pontrjagin ring structure. These calculations should also be of interest in string theory and quantum physics, where flag manifolds and their loop spaces play a significant role.