Existence of Dirac Eigenvalues of higher Multiplicity

Abstract

In this article, we prove that on any compact spin manifold of dimension m congruent 0,6,7 mod 8, there exists a metric, for which the associated Dirac operator has at least one eigenvalue of multiplicity at least two. We prove this by catching the desired metric in a subspace of Riemannian metrics with a loop that is not homotopically trivial. We show how this can be done on the sphere with a loop of metrics induced by a family of rotations. Finally, we transport this loop to an arbitrary manifold (of suitable dimension) by extending some known results about surgery theory on spin manifolds.