Related papers: Non-contractible configuration spaces

For a closed PL manifold M, we consider the configuration space F(M,k) of ordered k-tuples of distinct points in M. We show that a suitable iterated suspension of F(M,k) is a homotopy invariant of M. The number of suspensions we require…

For most aspherical Seifert-fibered 3-manifolds $M$, the space of Seifert fiberings $SF(M)$ is known to have contractible components. It is also known that the space of Hopf fiberings of the three-sphere is noncontractible. We provide the…

Let $M=S^n/ \Gamma$ and $h \in \pi_1(M)$ be a non-trivial element of finite order $p$, where the integers $n, p\geq2$ and $\Gamma$ is a finite abelian group which acts on the sphere freely and isometrically, therefore $M$ is diffeomorphic…

We calculate the Lusternik-Schnirelmann category of the k-th ordered configuration spaces F(R^n,k) of R^n and give bounds for the category of the corresponding unordered configuration spaces B(R^n,k) and the sectional category of the…

Let $M=S^n/ \Gamma$ and $h$ be a nontrivial element of finite order $p$ in $\pi_1(M)$, where the integer $n, p\geq2$, $\Gamma$ is a finite abelian group which acts freely and isometrically on the $n$-sphere and therefore $M$ is…

Let R be a commutative ring containing 1/2. We compute the R-cohomology ring of the configuration space F(m,k) of k ordered points in the m-dimensional real projective space. The method uses the observation that the orbit configuration…

We show that if $K$ is a nilpotent finite complex, then $\Omega K$ can be built from spheres using fibrations and homotopy (inverse) limits. This is applied to show that if ${\mathrm {map}}_*(X,S^n)$ is weakly contractible for all $n$, then…

We show that the order complex of the poset of all cosets of all proper subgroups of a finite group $G$ is never $\mathbb{F}_{2}$-acyclic and therefore never contractible. This settles a question of K. S. Brown.

For a smooth manifold M obtained as an embedding torus, A U Cx[-1,1], we consider the ordered configuration space F_k(M) of k distinct points in M. We show that there is a homotopical cubical resolution of F_k(M) defined from the…

Numerably contractible spaces play an important role in the theory of homotopy pushouts and pullbacks. The corresponding results imply that a number of well known weak homotopy equivalences are genuine ones if numerably contractible spaces…

Let $M$ be a simply connected closed manifold of dimension $n$. We study the rational homotopy type of the configuration space of 2 points in $M$, $F(M,2)$. When $M$ is even dimensional, we prove that the rational homotopy type of $F(M,2)$…

We define the manifold of configurations to be the quotient set of $k$ points in Euclidean space identified under congruence, and prove that compact subsets of $\mathbb{R}^d, d \geq 2$, of large Hausdorff dimension have a non-null set of…

Let $(M,g^{TM})$ be an odd dimensional ($\dim M\geq 3$) connected oriented noncompact complete spin Riemannian manifold. Let $k^{TM}$ be the associated scalar curvature. Let $f:M\to S^{\dim M}(1)$ be a smooth area decreasing map which is…

We first show that, for a fixed locally compact manifold $N,$ the space $L^2(S^1,N)$ has not the homotopy type odf the classical loop space $C^\infty(S^1,N),$ by two theorems: - the inclusion $C^\infty(S^1,N) \subset L^2(S^1,N)$ is null…

Let T_n be the Teichmueller space of flat metrics on the n-dimensional torus and identify SL(n,Z) with the corresponding mapping class group. We prove that the subset Y consisting of those points at which the systoles generate the…

In this paper we give an elementary proof of the proper homotopy invariance of the equivariant stable homotopy type of the configuration space $F(M,k)$ for a topological manifold $M$. Our technique is to compute the Spanier-Whitehead dual…

For a smooth manifold A, we consider the ordered configuration space F_k(AxR) of k distinct points in AxR. We obtain an explicit homotopy construction of the configuration space F_k(AxR) and of the (k-2)-fold suspension of F_k(A). Under…

Let M be a compact closed non-orientable surface. We show that the space of representations of the fundamental group of M into PSL(2,R) has exactly two connected components. These two components are the preimages of a certain…

We consider the configuration space of the Skyrme model and give a simple proof that loops generated by full spatial rotations are contractible in the even-, and non-contractible in the odd-winding-number sectors.

In this paper we prove that for all $n=4k-2$, $k\ge2$ there exists closed $n$-dimensional Riemannian manifolds $M$ with negative sectional curvature that do not have the homotopy type of a locally symmetric space, such that…