Adiabatic limits of the \(\eta\)-invariants. The odd-dimensional Atiyah- Patodi-Singer problem (Q1179852)

The paper is devoted to the ``odd'' Atiyah-Patodi-Singer problem for a generalized Dirac operator \(A: C^ \infty(X,V)\to C^ \infty(X,V)\) on an odd-dimensional compact manifold \(X\) with boundary \(Y\), and a unitary gauge transformation \(g: X\to U(N)\) with \(g\equiv I_ N\) near \(Y\): Consider the family \[ D_ t=t(I_ V\otimes g)(A\otimes I_ N)(I_ V\otimes g)^{-1} + (1-t)A\otimes I_ N \] which, supplemented by a fixed self-adjoint boundary condition \(P\), gives (up to unitary equivalence) a family of self-adjoint Fredholm operators over \(S^ 1\). The main problem is to find a topological formula for the spectral flow of this family along \(S^ 1\). Since this has been solved in the case of a closed manifold where it involves the eta-invariant of \(A\), it is natural to compare if possible the eta-invariant of \(A\) with the eta- invariant of some appropriate operator on the closed double \(\tilde X\) of \(X-X\) is assumed to have product structure near \(Y\), \(A=G(\partial_ u+B)\) near \(Y\) with \(B\) invertible, and \(P\) is just the Atiyah-Patodi- Singer boundary condition given by the projection corresponding to the positive part of the spectrum of \(B\). The authors show that this is at least possible in the adiabatic limit: \(X\) is replaced by \(X_ R\) which is \(X\) with a cylinder \([-R,R]\times Y\) attached to the boundary, and the eta-invariant of \(\tilde A_ R=A_ R\cup(-A_ R)\) on the double \(\tilde X_ R\) is replaced by the local eta-function \(\eta\tilde A_ R(s,x)\) defined like the eta-function by replacing \(A e^{-tA^ 2}\) by its kernel. Then it holds that \[ \lim_{R\to\infty}(\int_{X_ R}\eta_{\tilde A_ R}(0,x)dx-\eta_{(A_ R)P}(0))=0. \] The second main result is the following formula for the spectral flow \[ \text{sf}\{(D_ t)_ P\}=\text{rank }V\int_ X\sum_ k(i/2\pi)^ k[(k-1)!/(2k-1)!]\text{tr}(g^{-1}dg)^{2k-1}. \] In two appendices it is shown that this formula also holds for noninvertible \(B\) and for any generalized APS boundary condition \(P\), moreover, the homotopy type of the space of these projections is determined by the second named author.