Characterizing certain classes of $6$-dimensional closed and simply-connected manifolds via special generic maps

Abstract

The present paper finds new necessary and sufficient conditions for $6$-dimensional closed and simply-connected manifolds of certain classes to admit special generic maps into certain Euclidean spaces. The class of special generic maps naturally contains Morse functions with exactly two singular points on spheres in so-called Reeb's theorem, characterizing spheres topologically, and canonical projections of unit spheres. Our paper concerns variants of Reeb's theorem. Several results are known e. g. the cases where the manifolds of the targets are the plane and some cases where the manifolds of the domains are closed and simply-connected. Our paper concerns $6$-dimensional versions of a result of Nishioka, determining $5$-dimensional closed and simply-connected manifolds admitting special generic maps into Euclidean spaces completely. Closed and simply-connected manifolds are central geometric objects in (classical) algebraic topology and differential topology. The $6$-dimensional case is more complicated than the $5$-dimensional one: they are classified via explicit algebraic systems.