Universally defined cycles I

Abstract

We introduce and study the notion of universally defined cycles of smooth varieties of dimension $d$, and prove that they are given by polynomials in the Chern classes. A similar result is proved for universally defined cycles on products of smooth varieties. We also state a conjectural explicit form for universally defined cycles on powers of smooth varieties, and provide some steps towards establishing it.

Final version, to appear in Indagationes, special volume dedicated to the memory of Jacob Murre