Topological Invariants in Braid Theory

Many invariants of knots and links have their counterparts in braid theory. Often, these invariants are most easily calculated using braids. A braid is a set of n strings stretching between two parallel planes. This review demonstrates how integrals over the braid path can yield topological invariants. The simplest such invariant is the winding number – the net number of times two strings in a braid wrap about each other. But other, higher-order invariants exist. The mathematical literature on these invariants usually employs techniques from algebraic topology that may be unfamiliar to physicists and mathematicians in other disciplines. The primary goal of this paper is to introduce higher-order invariants using only elementary differential geometry.Some of the higher-order quantities can be found directly by searching for closed one-forms. However, the Kontsevich integral provides a more general route. This integral gives a formal sum of all finite order topological invariants. We describe the Kontsevich integral, and prove that it is invariant to deformations of the braid.Some of the higher-order invariants can be used to generate Hamiltonian dynamics of n particles in the plane. The invariants are expressed as complex numbers; but only the real part gives interesting topological information. Rather than ignoring the imaginary part, we can use it as a Hamiltonian. For n = 2, this will be the Hamiltonian for point vortex motion in the plane. The Hamiltonian for n = 3 generates more complicated motions.     

Differentiability of invariants and Liapunov equations in Hamiltonian systems

In this communication, we investigate the behavior of the derivatives of invariants for Hamiltonian systems, using information derived from an analysis of the Liapunov exponents of the system. We show that under certain conditions on the analyticity properties of the solutions of the equations of motion, it is possible to construct 2n invariants of motion which are guaranteed to beC ^∞ as functions of phase space and time in a suitably defined domainD.     

Tensor Invariants of the Poisson Brackets of Hydrodynamic Type

Form-invariant solutions for the Poisson brackets of hydrodynamic type on a manifold M ⁿ with (2,0)-tensor g ^ij (u) of rank m ≤ n are derived. Tensor invariants of the Poisson brackets are introduced that include a vector field V (or dynamical system V) on M ⁿ , the Lie derivative L _V g ^ij and symmetric (k, 0)-tensors . Several scalar invariants of the Poisson brackets are defined. A nilpotent Lie algebra structure is disclosed in the space of 1-forms that annihilate the (2,0)-tensor g ^ij (u). Applications to the one-dimensional gas dynamics are presented.     

Canonical transformations and exact invariants for time‐dependent Hamiltonian systems

An exact invariant is derived for n‐degree‐of‐freedom non‐relativistic Hamiltonian systems with general time‐dependent potentials. To work out the invariant, an infinitesimalcanonical transformation is performed in the framework of the extended phase‐space. We apply this approach to derive the invariant for a specific class of Hamiltonian systems. For the considered class of Hamiltonian systems, the invariant is obtained equivalently performing in the extended phase‐space a finitecanonical transformation of the initially time‐dependent Hamiltonian to a time‐independent one. It is furthermore shown that the invariant can be expressed as an integral of an energy balance equation. The invariant itself contains a time‐dependent auxiliary function ξ (t) that represents a solution of a linear third‐order differential equation, referred to as the auxiliary equation. The coefficients of the auxiliary equation depend in general on the explicitly known configuration space trajectory defined by the system's time evolution. This complexity of the auxiliary equation reflects the generally involved phase‐space symmetry associated with the conserved quantity of a time‐dependent non‐linear Hamiltonian system. Our results are applied to three examples of time‐dependent damped and undamped oscillators. The known invariants for time‐dependent and time‐independent harmonic oscillators are shown to follow directly from our generalized formulation.     

Superalgebras in N = 1 gauge theories

N = 1 supersymmetric gauge theories with global flavor symmetries contain a gauge invariant W-superalgebra which acts on its moduli space of gauge invariants. With adjoint matter, this superalgebra reduces to a graded Lie algebra. When the gauge group is SO(n_c), with vector matter, it is a W-algebra, and the primary invariants form one of its representation. The same superalgebra exists in the dual theory, but its construction in terms of the dual fields suggests that duality may be understood in terms of a charge conjugation within the algebra. We extend the analysis to the gauge group E₆.     

Euclidean Special Relativity

New four coordinates are introduced which are related to the usual space-time coordinates. For these coordinates, the Euclidean four-dimensional length squared is equal to the interval squared of the Minkowski space. The Lorentz transformation, for the new coordinates, becomes an SO(4) rotation. New scalars (invariants) are derived. A second approach to the Lorentz transformation is presented. A mixed space is generated by interchanging the notion of time and proper time in inertial frames. Within this approach the Lorentz transformation is a 4-dimensional rotation in an Euclidean space, leading to new possibilities and applications.     

On invariant and covariant Schwartz distributions in the case of a compact linear group

A proof is given for the representations of invariant and covariant (Schwartz) distributions onR ⁿ , which are often used in theoretical physics. We express invariant distributions as distributions of standard polynomial invariants and decompose covariant distributions in standard polynomial covariants. Our consideration is restricted to compact groups acting linearly onR ⁿ . The representation for invariant distributions is obtained provided the standard invariants form an algebraically independent generating set in the ring of invariant polynomials. As for the standard covariants we assume that in the class of covariant polynomials they provide a unique decomposition into a sum of the standard covariants multiplied with invariant polynomials.     

Link Homologies and the Refined Topological Vertex

We establish a direct map between refined topological vertex and sl(N) homological invariants of the of Hopf link, which include Khovanov-Rozansky homology as a special case. This relation provides an exact answer for homological invariants of the Hopf link, whose components are colored by arbitrary representations of sl(N). At present, the mathematical formulation of such homological invariants is available only for the fundamental representation (the Khovanov-Rozansky theory) and the relation with the refined topological vertex should be useful for categorizing quantum group invariants associated with other representations (R ₁, R ₂). Our result is a first direct verification of a series of conjectures which identifies link homologies with the Hilbert space of BPS states in the presence of branes, where the physical interpretation of gradings is in terms of charges of the branes ending on Lagrangian branes.     

Global invariants and equilibrium states in lattice gases

It is now well known that, in addition to the physical conserved quantities, lattice gases also have other unphysical ones related to the discretization of their phase space. From an abstract point of view a lattice gas can be considered like a full discrete Markov processL and these spurious conserved quantities yield the existence of a nonspatially homogeneous equilibrium state forL ^k. We show that a particular set of these conserved quantities is of special interest: Its elements will be called regular. These regular invariants are simply built from the local ones and their projection on each node is always a locally conserved quantity. Moreover, for most models they are one-to-one related to the Gibbs states ofL ^k which remain factorized. It turns out that all the classical known spurious invariants are regular and one can exhibit simple conditions to build models with only regular invariants. For the latter it is then justified to determine the transport coefficients of the locally conserved densities with the Green-Kubo procedure.     

The Yamada polynomial of spacial graphs and knit algebras

The Yamada polynomial for embeddings of graphs is widely generalized by using knit semigroups and polytangles. To construct and investigate them, we use a diagrammatic method combined with the theory of algebrasH _N,M(a,q), which are quotients of knit semigroups and are generalizations of Iwahori-Hecke algebrasH _n(q). Our invariants are versions of Turaev-Reshetikhin's invariants for ribbon graphs, but our construction is more specific and computable.This research was supported in part by NSF grant DMS-9100383     

Conversion from n bands color space to HSI n color space

This paper presents the method to get the equations that transform a color space of n independent primary colors to the HIS _n color system (H: hue, S: saturation, I: intensity); n indicates the number of bands and the shape of the HIS _n space. For n = 3 the structure is a double triangular pyramid, for n 4 it is the structure of the double pyramid tetrangular, and so on.     

Algebraic and Geometric Properties of Matrix Solutions of Nonlinear Wave Equations

We improve the construction of exact matrix solutions for nonlinear wave equations by using unitary anti-Hermitian and anticommuting matrices. We prove the theorem that constructs the matrix functions u _n satisfying the nonlinear wave equation for a set of special potentials. In this case, the graph of complex solution u ₁ has a soliton-like form with a finite number of coils. Exponential representation of matrix solutions u _n is associated with continuous rotations that can be used for describing intrinsic rotations and state changes of elementary particles. We also prove the theorem on the decomposition of continuous rotation (described by solution u ₂) onto three simultaneous rotations about coordinate vectors. Each of the three constructed matrix solutions u ₃ is also decomposed into the triplet of elementary matrix solutions.     

Translations and rotations in Riemannian space

Vector fields ξ_i, corresponding to the Poincaré group generators (infinitesimal translations and rotations) are defined by first-order differential conditions. These equations have nontrivial solutions in an arbitrary torsionless Riemannian space, and can be considered as a generalization of the definition of translations and rotations in flat space. The equations for translations can be integrated. For a space with the Minkowski topology, if the boundary conditions at infinity are shown so that the space is asymptotically flat, the solution is unique. The vector fields ξ_i specify a physical system as a whole.     

Coherent state operators and n-point invariants for U q ((sl(2))

We write down a complete set of n-point U_q(sl(2)) invariants (using a polynomial basis for the irreducible finite dimensional U _q -modules) that are regular for all nonzero values of the deformation parameter q.     

The stability problem: New results and counterexamples

Let I be the group of rotations of the circle and for each n, let I _n be the subgroup of I having exactly n elements. For sufficiently small , it is shown that every -homomorphism from I _n into I is an -perturbation of a homomorphism. Best possible results are given for n=2, 3, 4. For maps from I _n into I _n , best possible results are given for n12.     

Topological aspects of Yang-Mills theory

The space of mapsS ³ G has components which give the topological quantum number of Yang-Mills theory for the groupG. Each component of the space has further topological invariants. WhenG=SU(2) we show that these invariants (the homology groups) are captured by the space of instantons. Using these invariants we show that potentials must exist for which the massless Dirac equation (in Euclidean 4-space) has arbitrarily many independent solutions (for fixed instanton number).     

Quantum crystallization of two-dimensional dipole systems

An analysis is made of the region of existence of crystalline order in a system of spatially separated electrons (e) and holes (h) in two coupled quantum wells for various concentrations n, temperatures T, and distances D between the layers. A study is also made of crystallization in a system of electrons in semiconductor structures near a metal electrode for various distances d between the semiconductor and the metal. Calculations of the crystalline phase were made using variational calculations of the ground-state energy of the system allowing for pairing of quasiparticles with nonzero momentum. For a system of two coupled quantum wells, regions in (T,n,D) space are determined in which electron (or hole) charge-density waves exist in each layer and regions where these charge-density waves are in phase, in other words, indirect excitons (or pairs with spatially separated electrons and holes) interacting as electric dipoles, become crystallized. In the electron system in semiconductor structures near a metal electrode, regions of existence of an electron crystal are also obtained in (T,n,D) space, where over large distances the electrons interact as electric dipoles because of image forces. Fiz. Tverd. Tela (St. Petersburg) 40, 1350–1355 (July 1998)     

Loop and Path Spaces and¶Four-Dimensional BF Theories:¶Connections, Holonomies and Observables

We study the differential geometry of principal G-bundles whose base space is the space of free paths (loops) on a manifold M. In particular we consider connections defined in terms of pairs (A,B), where A is a connection for a fixed principal bundle P(M,G) and B is a 2-form on M. The relevant curvatures, parallel transports and holonomies are computed and their expressions in local coordinates are exhibited. When the 2-form B is given by the curvature of A, then the so-called non-abelian Stokes formula follows. For a generic 2-form B, we distinguish the cases when the parallel transport depends on the whole path of paths and when it depends only on the spanned surface. In particular we discuss generalizations of the non-abelian Stokes formula. We study also the invariance properties of the (trace of the) holonomy under suitable transformation groups acting on the pairs (A,B). In this way we are able to define observables for both topological and non-topological quantum field theories of the BF type. In the non-topological case, the surface terms may be relevant for the understanding of the quark-confinement problem. In the topological case the (perturbative) four-dimensional quantum BF-theory is expected to yield invariants of imbedded (or immersed) surfaces in a 4-manifold M. Received: 28 March 1998 / Accepted: 12 September 1998