Index of Equivariant Callias-Type Operators and Invariant Metrics of Positive Scalar Curvature

Abstract

We formulate, for any Lie group G acting isometrically on a manifold M, the general notion of a G-equivariant elliptic operator that is invertible outside of a G-cocompact subset of M. We prove a version of the Rellich lemma for this setting and use this to define the equivariant index of such operators. We show that G-equivariant Callias-type operators are self-adjoint, regular, and hence equivariantly invertible at infinity. Such operators explicitly arise from a pairing of the Dirac operator with the equivariant Higson corona. We apply the theory developed herein to obtain an obstruction to positive scalar curvature metrics on non-cocompact manifolds.