String Topology: Background and Present State

zbMATH Open1171.55003arXiv0710.4141MaRDI QIDQ3596950FDOQ3596950

Authors: Dennis Sullivan 

Publication date: 9 February 2009

Abstract: The data of a "2D field theory with a closed string compactification" is an equivariant chain level action of a cell decomposition of the union of all moduli spaces of punctured Riemann surfaces with each component compactified as a pseudomanifold with boundary. The axioms on the data are contained in the following assumptions. It is assumed the punctures are labeled and divided into nonempty sets of inputs and outputs. The inputs are marked by a tangent direction and the outputs are weighted by nonnegative real numbers adding to unity. It is assumed the gluing of inputs to outputs lands on the pseudomanifold boundary of the cell decomposition and the entire pseudomanifold boundary is decomposed into pieces by all such factorings. It is further assumed that the action is equivariant with respect to the toroidal action of rotating the markings. A main result of compactified string topology is the Theorem (closed strings): Each oriented smooth manifold has a 2D field theory with a closed string compactification on the equivariant chains of its free loop space mod constant loops. The sum over all surface types of the top pseudomanifold chain yields a chain X satisfying the master equation dX + X*X = 0 where * is the sum over all gluings. This structure is well defined up to homotopy. The genus zero parts yields an infinity Lie bialgebra on the equivariant chains of the free loop space mod constant loops. The higher genus terms provide further elements of algebraic structure called a "quantum Lie bialgebra" partially resolving the involutive identity. There is also a compactified discussion and a Theorem 2 for open strings as the first step to a more complete theory. We note a second step for knots.

Full work available at URL: https://arxiv.org/abs/0710.4141

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zbMATH Keywords

moduli spaceintersection productmaster equationstring diagramBV algebraopen stringclosed stringdiffuse equivariant chainequivariant loop space

Mathematics Subject Classification ID

Loop spaces (55P35) Topological quantum field theories (aspects of differential topology) (57R56) Two-dimensional field theories, conformal field theories, etc. in quantum mechanics (81T40) Topological field theories in quantum mechanics (81T45) Products and intersections in homology and cohomology (55N45) Abstract and axiomatic homotopy theory in algebraic topology (55U35) Chain complexes in algebraic topology (55U15)

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• Hochschild homology of structured algebras
• Strings, fermions and the topology of curves on annuli
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• Some recent progress in string topology
• Open-closed field theories, string topology, and Hochschild homology
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• A detailed look on actions on Hochschild complexes especially the degree 1 coproduct and actions on loop spaces
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• Homology of spaces of regular loops in the sphere
• Knot contact homology, string topology, and the cord algebra
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