Orientability of high-dimensional manifolds with odd Euler characteristic

Abstract

We call a manifold $k$-orientable if the $i^{th}$ Stiefel-Whitney class vanishes for all $i< 2^k$ ($k\geq 0$), generalising the notions of orientable (1-orientable) and spin (2-orientable). In \cite{Hoekzema2017} it was shown that $k$-orientable manifolds have even Euler characteristic (and in fact vanishing top Wu class), unless their dimension is $2^{k+1}m$ for some $m\geq 1$. This theorem is strict for $k=0,1,2,3$, but whether there exist 4-orientable manifolds with an odd Euler characteristic is an open question. This paper discusses the question of finding candidates for such a manifold $\mathfrak{X}^{32m}$. As part of our investigation we study the example of the three exceptional symmetric spaces known as Rosenfeld planes, which have odd Euler characteristic and are of dimension 32, 64 and 128. We perform computations of the action of the Steenrod algebra on the mod 2 cohomology of the first two of these manifolds with the use computer calculations. The first Rosenfeld plane, $(\mathbb{O} \otimes \mathbb{C})\mathbb{P}^{2}$, is 2-orientable but not 3-orientable and thus not an example of $\mathfrak{X}^{32}$. We show that the second Rosenfeld plane $(\mathbb{O} \otimes \mathbb{H})\mathbb{P}^{2}$ is 3-orientable and we present a condition under which is may be 4-orientable if the action of the Steenrod algebra is established further, and therefore it remains a potential candidate for $\mathfrak{X}^{64}$. No other clear candidate manifolds for $\mathfrak{X}^{32m}$ or in particular candidates for $\mathfrak{X}^{32}$ are known to the author.