Office of Research, UC Riverside
Julie Bergner
Associate Professor of Mathematics
Mathematics
jbergner@ucr.edu
(951) 827-3507


CAREER: Equivariant topological field theories and higher cluster categories

AWARD NUMBER
006613-005
FUND NUMBER
21226
STATUS
Closed
AWARD TYPE
3-Grant
AWARD EXECUTION DATE
6/9/2015
BEGIN DATE
9/1/2014
END DATE
8/31/2019
AWARD AMOUNT
$36,040

Sponsor Information

SPONSOR AWARD NUMBER
DMS-1352298
SPONSOR
NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION
SPONSOR TYPE
Federal
FUNCTION
Organized Research
PROGRAM NAME

Proposal Information

PROPOSAL NUMBER
14010050
PROPOSAL TYPE
New
ACTIVITY TYPE
Basic Research

PI Information

PI
Bergner, Julie Elizabeth
PI TITLE
Other
PI DEPTARTMENT
Mathematics
PI COLLEGE/SCHOOL
College of Nat & Agr Sciences
CO PIs

Project Information

ABSTRACT

This proposal is concerned with several extensions and applications of the theory of homotopical higher categories. Our first foundational objective is to develop equivariant versions of the many known models for homotopical higher categories and to establish equivalences between them. Our first proposed application is the development of homotopical approaches to equivariant extended topological field theories. The second application is the development of topological cluster categories arising from surfaces; extending to higher dimensions should allow for the development of new invariants of higher-dimensional manifolds analogous to ones for surfaces. This second application should also inform the first, with higher-dimensional cluster categories giving new information about topological field theories. The third application is concerned with connections between Hall algebras and algebraic K-theory. In one direction, constructions of homotopical Hall algebras are expected to give rise to K-theory spectra which should give new information about Hall algebras, especially those related to quantum groups. In another, variations of Hall algebra constructions have corresponding variants of algebraic K-theory which are worthy of further investigation.

Broadly speaking, this proposal is concerned with incorporating algebraic information into categorical and topological structures which are currently being used in a wide range of kinds of mathematics. We then seek to apply these enhanced structures in mathematical physics, manifold theory, and representation theory. The educational component of this proposal consists of a series of four summer workshops for mathematics majors who are in the process of transferring to UC Riverside. The goal is to help twenty participants each year to make the transition to upper-level mathematics via introduction to proof techniques, more theoretical concepts, and a broad overview of the range of topics in higher-level mathematics courses. Students will be provided with some follow-up mentoring activities, including opportunities for participating in undergraduate research.
(Abstract from NSF)