Defining and classifying TQFTs via surgery (Q1651609)

TQFT, proposed in [\textit{M. Atiyah}, Publ. Math., Inst. Hautes Étud. Sci. 68, 175--186 (1988; Zbl 0692.53053); \textit{G. B. Segal}, NATO ASI Ser., Ser. C 250, 165--171 (1988; Zbl 0657.53060); \textit{E. Witten}, Commun. Math. Phys. 117, No. 3, 353--386 (1988; Zbl 0656.53078)] has been one of the most attractive topics in geometry, topology, and physics. Despite the classification [\textit{J. Lurie}, in: Current developments in mathematics, 2008. Somerville, MA: International Press. 129--280 (2009; Zbl 1180.81122)] of fully extended TQFTs, there are still many things unknown. This paper gives a presentation for \(\mathbf{Cob}_n\), the category of \(n\)-dimensional cobordisms, obtaining sufficient and necessary conditions for a functor from the category of smooth manifolds to \(C\), for any category \(C\), to be extendable to \(\mathbf{Cob}_n\to C\). If \(C\) is symmetric and monoidal, then it can be characterized when the extension is a TQFT. Subsequent results are: 1. the classical correspondence [\textit{J. Kock}, Frobenius algebras and 2D topological quantum field theories. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press (2004; Zbl 1046.57001)] between 2d TQFTs and Frobenius algebras is reproved rapidly; 2. cobordism maps in Heegaard Floer homology are constructed; and most remarkably, 3. \((2+1)\)-dimensional TQFTs are classified in terms of new algebraic structures. Therefore, this framework is powerful. It will no doubt lead to deep understanding of cobordisms, and will enable researchers to uncover structures involved in un-extended TQFTs in other dimensions.