Gauge Theory Seminar: Aganagic’s invariant is Khovanov homology

Recently, Aganagic proposed a categorification of quantum link invariants (corresponding to U_q(g) where g is an ADE Lie algebra) using Lagrangian Floer theory in multiplicative Coulomb branches equipped with a potential. Her original proposal was based on insights from string theory, but the resulting definition of categorified link invariants can be made mathematically rigorous. In this talk, I will review her proposal for link invariants and explain my recent proof (joint with Vivek Shende) that Aganagic’s invariant recovers Khovanov homology in the case g=sl(2).