The degree of maps of free \(G\)-manifolds and the average (Q998026)

\textit{Y. Hara} [Topology Appl. 148, 113--121 (2005; Zbl 1064.57038)] used the transfer as constructed by \textit{D. H. Gottlieb} in [J. Differ. Geom. 10, 39--48 (1975; Zbl 0294.55009)] to study the degree of \(G\)-equivariant maps \(f:M\to N\) between free \(G\)-manifolds where \(G\) is a compact Lie group. The present author obtains somewhat stronger results using a different approach: If \(\dim G=k\) and \(G\) acts freely on a space \(X\), denote by \(\phi:X/G\to BG\) a classifying map for \(X\), then the \(G\)-class group \(\Gamma(G,X)\) is defined to be the image of \(H^{n-k}(BG;K)\) under \(\phi^*\) in \(H^{n-k}(X/G;K)\) where \(K\) is a coefficient group. The author proves the following result: Let \(G\) be as above. Let \(G\) be connected and acting freely on compact, connected manifolds \(M\) and \(N\) of dimension \(n\). Let \(f:M\to N\) be \(G\)-equivariant of degree \(d\). By choosing the top generators appropriately one may assume that \(d\geq0\). If \(a=(H^{n-k}(M/G;\mathbb{Z}):\Gamma(G,M))\) and \(b=(H^{n-k}(N/G;\mathbb{Z}):\Gamma(G,N))\) then \(a=bd\). So, if \(a=1\) we have that \(\deg f=1\), and \(a=\infty\) implies \(\deg f=0\). In the non-connected case the author obtains the following result: If \(M\), \(N\), \(f\) and \(d\) are as above and \(G\) is a compact Lie group, \(\dim G=k\), let \(G_0\) denote the component of \(1\in G\) and assume that \(G/G_0\) is isomorphic to \(\mathbb{Z}_p\) for a prime \(p>2\) and that \(G\) acts again freely on \(M\) and \(N\). If \(\phi^*:H^{n-k}(BG;\mathbb{Z}_p)\to H^{n-k}(M/G;\mathbb{Z}_p)\) is nonzero then \(d\equiv1 \mod p\). If \(\phi^*=0\) but if \(\psi^*\not=0\) (where \(\psi:N/G\to BG\) is a classifying map for \(N\)) then \(p| d\).