Covariance in the Batalin-Vilkovisky formalism and the Maurer-Cartan equation for curved Lie algebras (Q1731138)

In the paper under review, the author studies the Batalin-Vilkovisky formalism for classical mechanics using the Maurer-Cartan equation in a curved Lie superalgebra. In particular, it is shown that a particle and a spinning particle can be formulated as AKSZ field theories. The paper is arranged into 7 sections. In section 2 and 3, the required background on curved Lie algebras and formal variational calculus are presented. In section 4, it is shown that an AKSZ field theory in one dimension associated with a graded supermanifold equipped with an exact symplectic form has associated with it a Maurer-Cartan element in a curved Lie superalgebra. Such elements are referred to as a Maurer-Cartan element of a classical covariant field theory. Moving on to section 5, the issue of field theories that contain topological terms is addressed. Note that such field theories have symplectic forms that are no longer exact. To cope with this the author uses the Thom-Whitney totalization for cosimplicial curved Lie superalgebras. In section 6, the results of earlier sections are applied to general covariant field theory coupled to gravity. As a specific example, one can think of a particle in a curved spacetime with a background electromagnetic field. In the final section, the spinning particle is analyzed. This model is considered as a toy model for a supersymmetric sigma-model coupled to supergravity.