A uniform classification of discrete series representations of affine Hecke algebras

Abstract: We give a new and independent parameterization of the set of discrete series characters of an affine Hecke algebra $\mathcal{H}{\mathbf{v}}$, in terms of a canonically defined basis $\mathcal{B}{gm}$ of a certain lattice of virtual elliptic characters of the underlying (extended) affine Weyl group. This classification applies to all semisimple affine Hecke algebras $\mathcal{H}$, and to all $\mathbf{v}\in\mathcal{Q}$, where $\mathcal{Q}$ denotes the vector group of positive real (possibly unequal) Hecke parameters for $\mathcal{H}$. By analytic Dirac induction we define for each $b\in \mathcal{B}{gm}$ a continuous (in the sense of [OS2]) family $\mathcal{Q}^{reg}_b:=\mathcal{Q}_b\backslash\mathcal{Q}_b^{sing}\ni\mathbf{v}\to\operatorname{Ind}{D}(b;\mathbf{v})$, such that $\epsilon(b;\mathbf{v})\operatorname{Ind}{D}(b;\mathbf{v})$ (for some $\epsilon(b;\mathbf{v})\in{\pm 1}$) is an irreducible discrete series character of $\mathcal{H}{\mathbf{v}}$. Here $\mathcal{Q}^{sing}_b\subset\mathcal{Q}$ is a finite union of hyperplanes in $\mathcal{Q}$. In the non-simply laced cases we show that the families of virtual discrete series characters $\operatorname{Ind}{D}(b;\mathbf{v})$ are piecewise rational in the parameters $\mathbf{v}$. Remarkably, the formal degree of $\operatorname{Ind}{D}(b;\mathbf{v})$ in such piecewise rational family turns out to be rational. This implies that for each $b\in \mathcal{B}{gm}$ there exists a universal rational constant $d_b$ determining the formal degree in the family of discrete series characters $\epsilon(b;\mathbf{v})\operatorname{Ind}{D}(b;\mathbf{v})$. We will compute the canonical constants $d_b$, and the signs $\epsilon(b;\mathbf{v})$. For certain geometric parameters we will provide the comparison with the Kazhdan-Lusztig-Langlands classification.