Andrew Neitzke | Abelianization in quantum topology

Math Science Lectures in Honor of Raoul Bott: Andrew Neitzke Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024 Title: Abelianization in quantum topology Abstract: I will describe new applications of abelianization to various related subjects: perturbative Chern-Simons invariants, skein algebras, and conformal blocks. The aim is to explain how abelianization gives a unifying perspective on constructions familiar in each of these subjects (e.g. dilogarithmic formulas for Chern-Simons invariants, vertex models for computing quantum invariants of links, and iterated-fusion constructions of conformal blocks for the Virasoro algebra), and also suggests various extensions, which are just beginning to be explored.