Homotopy in statistical physics

Ralph Kenna

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arXiv · cond-mat/0602459

Homotopy in statistical physics

Ralph Kenna

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Abstract

In condensed matter physics and related areas, topological defects play important roles in phase transitions and critical phenomena. Homotopy theory facilitates the classification of such topological defects. After a pedagogic introduction to the mathematical methods involved in topology and homotopy theory, the role of the latter in a number of mainly low-dimensional statistical-mechanical systems is outlined. Some recent activities in this area are reviewed and some possible future directions are discussed.

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Ralph Kenna. 2006-04-12. Homotopy in statistical physics. https://arxiv.org/abs/cond-mat/0602459

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