Related papers: A functorial approach to differential characters
We introduce certain relative differential characters which we call Cheeger-Chern-Simons characters. These combine the well-known Cheeger-Simons characters with Chern-Simons forms. In the same way as the Cheeger-Simons characters generalize…
Cheeger-Simons differential characters and differential $K$-theory are refinements of ordinary cohomology theory and topological $K$-theory respectively, and they are examples of differential cohomology. Each of these differential…
Topological integrals appear frequently in Lagrangian field theories. On manifolds without boundary, they can be treated in the framework of (absolute) (co)homology using the formalism of Cheeger--Simons differential characters. String and…
The groups of differential characters of Cheeger and Simons admit a natural multiplicative structure. The map given by the squares of degree 2k differential characters reduces to a homomorphism of ordinary cohomology groups. We prove that…
We study Cheeger-Simons differential characters and provide geometric descriptions of the ring structure and of the fiber integration map. The uniqueness of differential cohomology (up to unique natural transformation) is proved by deriving…
The theory of differential characters is developed completely from a de Rham - Federer viewpoint. Characters are defined as equivalence classes of special currents, called sparks, which appear naturally in the theory of singular…
Let $\pi\colon P\to M$ be a principal bundle and $p$ an invariant polynomial of degree r on the Lie algebra of the structure group. The theory of Chern-Simons differential characters is exploited to define an homology map $\chi^{k} :…
We describe an interpretation of the Kervaire invariant of a Riemannian manifold of dimension $4k+2$ in terms of a holomorphic line bundle on the abelian variety $H^{2k+1}(M)\otimes R/Z$. Our results are inspired by work of Witten on the…
Cheeger-Simons differential characters, Deligne cohomology in the smooth category, the Hopkins-Singer construction of ordinary differential cohomology and the recent Harvey-Lawson constructions are each in two distinct ways Abelian group…
By adapting the Cheeger-Simons approach to differential cohomology, we establish a notion of differential cohomology with compact support. We show that it is functorial with respect to open embeddings and that it fits into a natural diagram…
There are two natural candidates for the group of relative Cheeger-Simons differential characters. The first directly extends the work of Cheeger and Simons and the second extends the description given by Hopkins and Singer of the…
In this paper we introduce the Cheeger-Simons cohomology of a global quotient orbifold. We prove that the Cheeger-Simons cohomology of the orbifold is isomorphic to its Beilinson-Deligne cohomology. Furthermore we construct a string…
We provide a suitable axiomatic framework for differential cohomology in the relative case and we deduce the corresponding long exact sequences. We also construct the relative version of the generalized Cheeger-Simons characters and we…
A theory of differential characters is developed for manifolds with boundary. This is done from both the Cheeger-Simons and the deRham-Federer viewpoints. The central result of the paper is the formulation and proof of a…
A version of smooth K-theory is constructed, which is adapted to the total Chern class instead of the Chern character (contrarily to previous theories). Some total Chern class morphism from this K-theory to Cheeger-Simons differential…
We show that every sheaf on the site of smooth manifolds with values in a stable (infinity,1)-category (like spectra or chain complexes) gives rise to a differential cohomology diagram and a homotopy formula, which are common features of…
We give an overview of differential cohomology from a modern, homotopy-theoretic perspective in terms of sheaves on manifolds. Although modern techniques are used, we base our discussion in the classical precursors to this modern approach,…
We study differential forms and their higher-order generalizations by interpreting them as functions on map spaces. We get a series of approximations of "generalized manifolds" (i.e. of sheaves and stacks) somewhat akin to Taylor series.
We give a construction of algebraic differential characters, receiving classes of algebraic bundles with connection, lifitng the Chern-Simons invariants defined with S. Bloch, the classes in the Chow group and the analytic secondary…
We define secondary theories and characteristic classes for simplicial smooth manifolds generalizing Karoubi's multiplicative K-theory and multiplicative cohomology groups for smooth manifolds. As a special case we get versions of the…