Defining amplituhedra and Grassmann polytopes

Karp, Steven N.

Discrete mathematics & theoretical computer science, DMTCS Proceedings, 28th International Conference on Formal Power Series and Algebraic Combinatorics (FPSAC 2016), DMTCS Proceedings, 28th International Conference on Formal Power Series and Algebraic Combinatorics (FPSAC 2016) (2020).

Résumé

The totally nonnegative Grassmannian Gr≥0 k,n is the set of k-dimensional subspaces V of Rn whose nonzero Plucker coordinates all have the same sign. In their study of scattering amplitudes in N = 4 supersym- metric Yang-Mills theory, Arkani-Hamed and Trnka (2013) considered the image (called an amplituhedron) of Gr≥0 k,n under a linear map Z : Rn → Rr, where k ≤ r and the r × r minors of Z are all positive. One reason they required this positivity condition is to ensure that the map Gr≥0 k,n → Grk,r induced by Z is well defined, i.e. it takes everynelement of Gr≥0 k,n to a k-dimensional subspace of Rr. Lam (2015) gave a sufficient condition for the induced map Gr≥0 k,n → Grk,r to be well defined, in which case he called the image a Grassmann polytope. (In the case k = 1, Grassmann polytopes are just polytopes, and amplituhedra are cyclic polytopes.) We give a necessary and sufficient condition for the induced map Gr≥0 k,n → Grk,r to be well defined, in terms of sign variation. Using previous work we presented at FPSAC 2015, we obtain an equivalent condition in terms of the r × r minors of Z (assuming Z has rank r).

Détail

DOI : 10.46298/dmtcs.6356