Free cyclic actions on surfaces and the Borsuk-Ulam theorem

Abstract

Let $M$ and $N$ be topological spaces, let $G$ be a group, and let $\tau \colon\thinspace G \times M \to M$ be a proper free action of $G$. In this paper, we define a Borsuk-Ulam-type property for homotopy classes of maps from $M$ to $N$ with respect to the pair $(G,\tau)$ that generalises the classical antipodal Borsuk-Ulam theorem of maps from the $n$-sphere $\mathbb{S}^n$ to $\mathbb{R}^n$. In the cases where $M$ is a finite pathwise-connected CW-complex, $G$ is a finite, non-trivial Abelian group, $\tau$ is a proper free cellular action, and $N$ is either $\mathbb{R}^2$ or a compact surface without boundary different of $\mathbb{S}^2$ and $\mathbb{RP}^2$, we give an algebraic criterion involving braid groups to decide whether a free homotopy class $\beta \in [M,N]$ has the Borsuk-Ulam property. As an application of this criterion, we consider the case where $M$ is a compact surface without boundary equipped with a free action $\tau$ of the finite cyclic group $\mathbb{Z}_n$. In terms of the orientability of the orbit space $M_\tau$ of $M$ by the action $\tau$, the value of $n$ modulo $4$ and a certain algebraic condition involving the first homology group of $M_\tau$, we are able to determine if the single homotopy class of maps from $M$ to $\mathbb{R}^2$ possesses the Borsuk-Ulam property with respect to $(\mathbb{Z}_n,\tau)$. Finally, we give some examples of surfaces on which the symmetric group acts, and for these cases, we obtain some partial results regarding the Borsuk-Ulam property for maps whose target is $\mathbb{R}^2$.