Knot polynomial identities and quantum group coincidences (Q542637)

The goal of the paper is to construct knot and link invariants from the \(\mathcal{D}_{2n}\) subfactor planar algebras, and to use these invariants to prove new identities between quantum group knot polynomials. These identities relate certain specializations of colored Jones polynomials to specializations of other knot polynomials. The authors use the skein theoretic description of \(\mathcal{D}_{2n}\) to show that the Kauffman bracket gives a braiding up to sign for \(\mathcal{D}_{2n}\), and in particular gives a braiding on the even part. Using this, they define and discuss some new invariants of links which are the \(\mathcal{D}_{2n}\) analogues of the colored Jones polynomial. The authors also define some refinements of these invariants for multi-component links. The skein relations can be thought of as defining a ribbon category whose objects are collections of points (possibly with orientations) and whose morphisms are tangles modulo the skein relations and modulo all negligible morphisms. The authors also discuss some identities relating the \(\mathcal{D}_{2n}\) link invariants at small values of \(n\) to other link polynomials. The identities between knot polynomials come from functors between the corresponding categories. These identities can also be explained by coincidences between small modular categories involving the even parts of the \(\mathcal{D}_{2n}\) planar algebras. Kirby-Melvin symmetry relates link invariants from one representation of a quantum group to link invariants coming from another representation which is symmetric to it under a symmetry of the affine Weyl chamber. The authors give a new simple proof of Kirby-Melvin symmetry which applies very generally, and they also use a result of Wenzl and Tuba to strengthen Beliakova and Blanchet's statement of \(SO\) level-rank duality.