CMSA Geometry and Physics Seminar: 3-manifolds, q-series, and topological strings

CMSA EVENTS

Speaker:

Sunghyuk Park - Caltech

\hat{Z} is an invariant of 3-manifolds valued in q-series (i.e. power series in q with integer coefficients), which has interesting modular properties. While originally from physics, this invariant has been mathematically constructed for a big class of 3-manifolds, and conjecturally it can be extended to all 3-manifolds. In this talk, I will give a gentle introduction to \hat{Z} and what is known about it, as well as highlighting some recent developments, including the use of R-matrix, generalization to higher rank, large N-limit and interpretation as open topological string partition functions.

Zoom: https://harvard.zoom.us/j/94717938264