Infinitesimal 2-braidings and differential crossed modules (Q2342663)

In [C. R. Acad. Sci., Paris, Sér. I 316, No. 11, 1205--1210 (1993; Zbl 0791.57006)], \textit{P. Cartier} outlined a combinatorial construction of Vassiliev's finite type knot invariants. The construction is based on the notion of an \textit{infinitesimal braiding} in a linear strict monoidal category with an involutive braiding \(B_{x,y}\). An infinitesimal braiding is a functorial isomorphism \(r_{x,y}:x\otimes y\to x\otimes y\) such that {\parindent=0.7cm \begin{itemize}\item[(a)] for all \(x,y\): \(r_{y,x}\circ B_{x,y}=B_{x,y}\circ r_{x,y}\), \item[(b)] for all \(x,y,z\): \(r_{x,y\otimes z}=r_{x,y}^{12}+r_{x,z}^{13}\). \end{itemize}} One of the main points in the construction is the four-term-relation satisfied by an infinitesimal braiding: \[ [r_{x,y}^{12}+r_{x,z}^{13},r_{y,z}^{23}]=0. \] For a Lie algebra \({\mathfrak g}\), the category of non negative integers \(n\) as objects with infinitesimal braiding given by a \({\mathfrak g}\)-invariant tensor in \((U{\mathfrak g})^{\otimes n}\) is an example of the above. In the search of a categorified version of Vassiliev knot invariants, Cirio and Martins perform in this paper the categorification of the notion of an infinitesimal braiding. First of all, they define the notion of a \textit{strict monoidal linear 2-category}. The point in defining this notion is the plethora of coherence conditions which come into play by weakening the axioms of a strict monoidal linear category in the 2-category setting up to natural isomorphisms. The second step is to introduce on these 2-categories \textit{strict infinitesimal 2-braidings}. Here, on the 1-morphism level, we still talk about a morphism \(r_{x,y}:x\otimes y\to x\otimes y\) with linearity conditions of the above type. But now the functoriality is weakened up to some 2-morphisms which have to satisfy coherence and linearity conditions. For the more restrictive \textit{coherent infinitesimal 2-braidings}, a generalization of the above four-term-relation is proposed (Theorem 22). Cirio-Martins study in detail the relation to their earlier work on the categorified Knizhnik-Zamolodchikov connection. The outcome is here that a coherent infinitesimal 2-braiding can serve to define a flat KZ-type 2-connection on configuration space (Theorem 23). In Section 4, Cirio and Martins move on to associate to a crossed module of Lie algebras \(\partial:{\mathfrak h}\to{\mathfrak g}\) (i.e. the categorified version of the above Lie algebra \({\mathfrak g}\)) a strict monoidal linear 2-category \(C_{\partial:{\mathfrak h}\to{\mathfrak g}}\), inspired by the above 1-categorical example. They show that infinitesimal 2-braidings can be defined in this 2-category using the notion of a \textit{symmetric quasiinvariant tensor} for the crossed module, i.e. roughly speaking the data of {\parindent=0.7cm\begin{itemize}\item[(a)] a symmetric tensor \(r=\sum_qs_q\otimes t_q\in {\mathfrak g}\otimes{\mathfrak g}\), \item[(b)] a linear map \(\xi:{\mathfrak g}\to{\mathfrak g}\otimes{\mathfrak h} \oplus{\mathfrak h}\otimes{\mathfrak g}\) with symmetric image, \item[(c)] a \({\mathfrak g}\)-invariant element in \(\text{ker}\,(\partial)\subset{\mathfrak h}\) \end{itemize}} which must then satisfy some equivariance conditions. Cirio-Martins show that for the crossed module \(\partial:{\mathbb F}_0\to {\mathbb F}_1\times_{\alpha}{\mathfrak s}{\mathfrak l}_2({\mathbb C})\) (which is related to the string Lie algebra and has been introduced in [\textit{F. Wagemann}, Commun. Algebra 34, No. 5, 1699--1722 (2006; Zbl 1118.17004)]), the usual \(r\) matrix for \({\mathfrak s}{\mathfrak l}_2({\mathbb C})\) can be completed into a symmetric quasiinvariant tensor, therefore giving rise to an example of an infinitesimal 2-braiding in the associated 2-category. Note that in [\textit{S. Rivière} and \textit{F. Wagemann}, Algebr. Represent. Theory 18, No. 4, 1071--1099 (2015; Zbl 1372.17017)], these methods have been developed further in order to associate symmetric quasiinvariant tensors to a large class of crossed modules of Lie algebras, including the above string Lie algebras for general simple complex Lie algebra \({\mathfrak g}\) instead of \(\mathfrak{sl}_2({\mathbb C})\).