A reducible characteristic variety in type A

Abstract

We show that simple highest weight modules for sl_12 may have reducible characteristic variety. This answers a question of Borho-Brylinski and Joseph from 1984. The relevant singularity under Beilinson-Bernstein localization is the (in)famous Kashiwara-Saito singularity. We sketch the rather indirect route via the p-canonical basis, W-graphs and decomposition numbers for perverse sheaves that led us to examine this singularity.

13 pages, comments welcome