The Lusternik-Schnirelmann category of a Lie groupoid

Abstract

We propose a new homotopy invariant for Lie groupoids which generalizes the classical Lusternik-Schnirelmann category for topological spaces. We use a bicategorical approach to develop a notion of contraction in this context. We propose a notion of homotopy between generalized maps given by the 2-arrows in a certain bicategory of fractions. This notion is invariant under Morita equivalence. Thus, when the groupoid defines an orbifold, we have a well defined LS-category for orbifolds. We prove an orbifold version of the classical Lusternik-Schnirelmann theorem for critical points.