Evaluating thin flat surfaces (Q2041646)

The present paper introduces a sequence of categories and functors \[ \operatorname{TFS}\rightarrow\mathbf{k}\operatorname{TFS}\rightarrow\operatorname{VTFS}_\alpha\rightarrow\operatorname{STFS}_\alpha\rightarrow\operatorname{TFS}_\alpha\,, \] of thin flat surfaces which are presented in a planar form by ribbons glued to discs. The objects of \(\operatorname{TFS}\) are finite unions of intervals which are located in the boundary circles. The morphisms consist of two components: one of floating components which are the endomorphisms of the object \(0\), and the viewable components which admits at least some interval as input or output. The floating components are generated by surfaces \(S_{l+1,g}\) with \(l+1\) boundary circles and genus \(g\). The morphisms of the category \(\mathbf{k}\operatorname{TFS}\) are \(\mathbf{k}\)-linear combinations of thin flat surfaces, hence the endomorphisms of the object \(0\) have the form \(\mathbf{k}[S_{l+1,g}]\) for \(l,g\in\mathbb{Z}_+\). The category admits an \(\alpha\)-evaluation \(\alpha:\mathbf{k}[S_{l+1,g}]\rightarrow\mathbf{k}\), \(\alpha(S_{l+1,g})=\alpha_{l,g}\), which is encoded as a power series \[ Z_\alpha(T_1,T_2)=\sum_{k,g\geq 0}\alpha_{k,g}T_1^kT_2^g\,. \] The category \(\operatorname{VTFS}_\alpha\) of viewable morphisms is defined by evaluating the floating components \(S_{l+1,g}\) to \(\alpha_{l,g}\). The \(\alpha\)-evaluation is recognizable when \(\alpha\) as a matrix has finite rank (this implies a remarkable rational expression for \(Z_\alpha(T_1,T_2)\)). For \(\alpha\) recognizable, we have a canonical homomorphism from \(\mathbf{k}[T_1,T_2]\) to its dual with kernel a unique largest ideal \(I_\alpha\). The quotient algebra \(A_\alpha:=\mathbf{k}[T_1,T_2]/I_\alpha\) is a commutative Frobenius algebra with nondegenerate linear form \(\alpha\). The skein category \(\operatorname{STFS}_\alpha\) is the quotient of \(\operatorname{VTFS}_\alpha\) by the skein relations in the ideal \(I_\alpha\). This category has hom-spaces of finite dimension. Finally, the category \(\operatorname{TFS}_\alpha\) is the negligible quotient of \(\operatorname{STFS}_\alpha\) by the ideal \(J_\alpha\) of negligible morphisms which trivialize the trace \(\operatorname{tr}_\alpha(x):=\alpha(\hat{x})\). Taking the additive Karoubi envelope \[ \operatorname{DTFS}_\alpha:=\operatorname{Kar}(\operatorname{STFS}_\alpha^{\bigoplus})\,, \] gives an idempotent-complete \(\mathbf{k}\)-linear rigid symmetric monoidal category which is the analog of the Deligne category for \(\operatorname{TFS}\) and recognizable \(\alpha\) in two variables. A recognizable \(\alpha\) defines a point on the Hilbert scheme of the affine plane \(\mathbb{A}^2\) and there is a bijection between the ideals \(I_\alpha\) of codimension \(k\) (hence the Frobenius algebra \(A_\alpha\) is of dimension \(\operatorname{dim} A_\alpha=k\)) and points in the complement \(\mathcal{T}_k^\vee\setminus D_k\) of the dual tautological bundle \(\mathcal{T}_k^\vee\) on the Hilbert scheme and a suitable divisor \(D_k\) on it.