REAL K-COHOMOLOGY OF COMPLEX PROJECTIVE SPACES

Abstract

In this paper, we determine the structure of KO-cohomology of complex projective space P l and its product space P l × P m as algebras over the coefficient ring KO ∗ . We also give a description of the map KO ∗ ( P l+m ) → KO ∗ ( P l × P m ) induced by the map that classifies the tensor product of the canonical line bundles and show that its image is not contained in the image of the cross product KO ∗ ( P l ) ⊗KO∗ KO ∗ ( P m ) → KO ∗ ( P l × P m ) to see that non-existence of the formal group structure on KO ∗ ( P ∞ ). Introduction A commutative ring spectrum E is said to be complex oriented if an element x of the reduced E-cohomology of the infinite dimensional complex projective space CP ∞ is given such that x maps to a generator of the reduced E-cohomology of 1-dimensional complex projective space CP 1 ((2)). We call such an element x a complex orientation of E. On the other hand, if E-homology E∗E of E is a flat over the coefficient ring E∗, E∗E has a structure of a Hopf algebroid and E-homology theory takes values in the category of E∗E-comodule, in other words, the category of representations of the groupoid represented by the affine groupoid scheme represented by E∗E ((1)). If E is a complex oriented ring spectrum, the E-cohomology of the complex projective space is just a truncated polynomial algebra over E∗ and it is shown that E-homology E∗E of E is a flat over E∗. Moreover the product structure of CP ∞ gives a one dimensional formal group law over E ∗ ((5)) which closely relates with the structure of the Hopf algebroid ((2)). The complex K-theory is one of the most basic examples of complex oriented cohomology theories. However, KO-spectrum representing the real K-theory is one of a few well-known examples of spectra E without any complex orientation such that E∗E is flat over E∗ ((2), (7)). In fact, we see that KO-spectrum does not have any complex orientation by showing that the Atiyah-Hirzebruch spectral sequence converging to KO ∗ (CP l ) has a non-trivial