English

Totally nonnegative maximal tori and opposed Bruhat intervals

Combinatorics 2026-04-07 v1 Mathematical Physics math.MP Representation Theory

Abstract

Lusztig (2024) recently introduced the space T>0\mathcal{T}_{>0} of totally positive maximal tori of an algebraic group GG. Each such torus is the intersection of a totally positive Borel subgroup and a totally negative Borel subgroup. Lusztig defined a map from the totally positive part of GG to T>0\mathcal{T}_{>0} and conjectured that it is surjective. We verify this conjecture. We also examine the closure of T>0\mathcal{T}_{>0}, by studying when a totally nonnegative Borel subgroup is opposed to a totally nonpositive Borel subgroup. Our main result reduces this problem to a new combinatorial relation between pairs of Bruhat intervals of the Weyl group WW, which we call 'opposition'. We provide a characterization of opposition when G=SLnG = \text{SL}_n (and WW is the symmetric group). Along the way, we disprove another conjecture of Lusztig (2021) on totally nonnegative Borel subgroups. Finally, we connect T>0\mathcal{T}_{>0} to the amplituhedron introduced by Arkani-Hamed and Trnka (2014) in theoretical physics, by showing that T>0\mathcal{T}_{>0} can be regarded as a 'universal flag amplituhedron'. This gives further motivation for studying T>0\mathcal{T}_{>0} and its closure.

Cite

@article{arxiv.2604.03484,
  title  = {Totally nonnegative maximal tori and opposed Bruhat intervals},
  author = {Grant T. Barkley and Steven N. Karp},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2604.03484},
  year   = {2026}
}

Comments

39 pages

R2 v1 2026-07-01T11:53:32.001Z