arXiv subjects
Publications and source records attributed to Michael Penkava.
In this paper, we give a purely cohomological interpretation of the extension problem for (super) Lie algebras; that is the problem of extending a Lie algebra by another Lie algebra. We then give a similar interpretation of infinitesimal deformations of extensions. In particular, we consider infinitesimal deformations of representations of a Lie algebra.
This article explores L_Infinity structures -- also known as 'strongly homotopy Lie algebras' -- on 3-dimensional vector spaces with both Z- and Z_2-gradings. Since the Z-graded L_Infinity algebras are special cases of Z_2-graded algebras in the induced Z_2-grading, there are generally fewer Z-graded L_Infinity structures on a given space. On the other hand, only degree zero automorphisms, rather than just even automorphisms, are used to determine equivalence in a Z-graded space. We therefore find nontrivial examples in which the map from the Z-graded moduli space to the Z_2-graded moduli space is bijective, injective but not surjective, or surjective but not injective. Additionally, we study how the codifferentials in the moduli spaces deform into other nonequivalent codifferentials, which gives each moduli space a sort of topology.
We study the moduli space of four dimensional ordinary Lie algebras, and their versal deformations. Their classification is well known; our focus in this paper is on the deformations, which yield a picture of how the moduli space is assembled. Surprisingly, we get a nice geometric description of this moduli space essentially as an orbifold, with just a few exceptional points.
A classical problem in algebraic deformation theory is whether an infinitesimal deformation can be extended to a formal deformation. The answer to this question is usually given in terms of Massey powers. If all Massey powers of the cohomology class determined by the infinitesimal deformation vanish, then the deformation extends to a formal one. We consider another approach to this problem, by constructing a miniversal deformation of the algebra. One advantage of this approach is that it answers not only the question of existence, but gives a construction of an extension as well.
In this paper, we consider the versal deformations of three dimensional Lie algebras. We classify Lie algebras and study their deformations by using linear algebra techniques to study the cohomology. We will focus on how the deformations glue the space of all such structures together. This space is known as the moduli space. We will give a geometric description of this space, derived from deformation theory, in order to illustrate general features of moduli spaces of Lie algebras.
In this article we study extensions of Z_2-graded L_infinity algebras on a vector space of two even and one odd dimension. In particular, we determine all extensions of a super Lie algebra as an L_infinity algebra. Our convention on the parities is the opposite of the usual one, because we define our structures on the symmetric coalgebra of the parity reversion of a space.
This article explores \Z_2-graded L_\infinity algebra structures on a 2|1-dimensional vector space. The reader should note that our convention on the parities is the opposite of the usual one, because we define our structures on the symmetric coalgebra of the parity reversion of a space, so our 2|1-dimensional L_\infinity algebras correspond to the usual 1|2-dimensional algebras. We give a complete classification of all structures with a nonzero degree 1 term. We also classify all degree 2 codifferentials, which is the same as a classification of all 1|2-dimensional Z_2-graded Lie algebras. For each of these algebra structures, we calculate the cohomology and a miniversal deformation.
We classify strongly homotopy Lie algebras - also called L-infinity algebras - of one even and two odd dimensions, which are related to $2|1$-dimensional $Z_2$-graded Lie algebras. What makes this case interesting is that there are many nonequivalent L-infinity examples, in addition to the $Z_2$-graded Lie algebra (or superalgebra) structures, yet the moduli space is simple enough that we can give a complete classification up to equivalence.
We consider versal deformations of 0|3-dimensional L-infinity algebras, which correspond precisely to ordinary (non-graded) three dimensional Lie algebras. The classification of such algebras over C is well known, although we shall give a derivation of this classification using an approach of treating them as L-infinity algebras. Because the symmetric algebra of a three dimensional odd vector space contains terms only of exterior degree less than or equal to three, the construction of versal deformations can be carried out completely. We give a characterization of the moduli space of Lie algebras using deformation theory as a guide to understanding the picture.
We introduce the notion of volume of the representation variety of a finitely presented discrete group in a compact Lie group using the push-forward measure associated to a map defined by a presentation of the discrete group. We show that the volume thus defined is invariant under the Andrews-Curtis moves of the generators and relators of the discrete group, and moreover, that it is actually independent of the choice of presentation if the difference of the number of generators and the number of relators remains the same. We then calculate the volume of the representation variety of a surface group in an arbitrary compact Lie group using the classical technique of Frobenius and Schur on finite groups. Our formulas recover the results of Witten and Liu on the symplectic volume and the Reidemeister torsion of the moduli space of flat G-connections on a surface up to a constant factor when the Lie group G is semisimple.
An A-infinity algebra is given by a codifferential on the tensor coalgebra of a (graded) vector space. An associative algebra is a special case of an A-infinity algebra, determined by a quadratic codifferential. The notions of Hochschild and cyclic cohomology generalize from associative to A-infinity algebras, and classify the infinitesimal deformations of the algebra, and those deformations preserving an invariant inner product, respectively. Similarly, an L-infinity algebra is given by a codifferential on the exterior coalgebra of a vector space, with Lie algebras being special cases given by quadratic codifferentials. There are natural definitions of cohomology and cyclic cohomology, generalizing the usual Lie algebra cohomology and cyclic cohomology, which classify deformations of the algebra and those which preserve an invariant inner product. This article explores the definitions of these infinity algebras, their cohomology and cyclic cohomology, and the relation to their infinitesimal deformations.
In \cite{MP} we have shown that if a compact Riemann surface admits a Strebel differential with rational periods, then the Riemann surface is the complex model of an algebraic curve defined over the field of algebraic numbers. We will show in this article that even if all geometric data are defined over $\overline{\mathbb{Q}}$, the Strebel differential can still have a transcendental period. We construct a Strebel differential $q$ on an arbitrary complete nonsingular algebraic curve $C$ defined over $\overline{\mathbb{Q}}$ such that (i) all poles of $q$ are $\overline{\mathbb{Q}}$-rational points of $C$; (ii) the residue of $\sqrt{q}$ at each pole is a positive integer; and (iii) $q$ has a transcendental period.
This article explores some simple examples of L-infinity algebras and the construction of miniversal deformations of these structures. Among other things, it is shown that there are two families of nonequivalent L-infinity structures on a 1|1 dimensional vector space, two of which are Lie algebra structures. The main purpose of this work is to provide a simple effective procedure for constructing miniversal deformations, using the examples to illustrate the general technique. The same method can be applied directly to construct versal deformations of Lie algebras.
This work explores the deformation theory of algebraic structures in a very general setting. These structures include commutative, associative algebras, Lie algebras, and the infinity versions of these structures, the strongly homotopy associative and Lie algebras. In all these cases the algebra structure is determined by an element of a certain graded Lie algebra which plays the role of a differential on this algebra. We work out the deformation theory in terms of the Lie algebra of coderivations of an appropriate coalgebra structure and construct a universal infinitesimal deformation as well as a miniversal formal deformation. By working at this level of generality, the main ideas involved in deformation theory stand out more clearly.
It is well known that there is a bijective correspondence between metric ribbon graphs and compact Riemann surfaces with meromorphic Strebel differentials. In this article, it is proved that Grothendieck's correspondence between dessins d'enfants and Belyi morphisms is a special case of this correspondence. For a metric ribbon graph with edge length 1, an algebraic curve over $\bar Q$ and a Strebel differential on it is constructed. It is also shown that the critical trajectories of the measured foliation that is determined by the Strebel differential recover the original metric ribbon graph. Conversely, for every Belyi morphism, a unique Strebel differential is constructed such that the critical leaves of the measured foliation it determines form a metric ribbon graph of edge length 1, which coincides with the corresponding dessin d'enfant.
In this paper we give some examples of generalized Massey products, arising from deformations of A-infinity and L-infinity algebras. The generalized Massey products are given by certain graded commutative algebra structures, depending on the deformation problem considered. We show that the formal deformations of infinity algebras give rise to the same algebraic structure as the deformations of Z2-graded Lie algebras. However, the problem of deforming a Lie algebra into an L-infinity algebra, or an associative algebra into an A-infinity algebra gives rise to a new algebra. We also consider deformations of infinity algebras with a base. In math.QA/9602024, it was shown that the Jacobi identity for a bracket on the tensor product of a Lie algebra and a graded commutative algebra is equivalent to a Maurer-Cartan formula. We prove a generalized result in the case of infinity algebras.
This paper discusses the notion of a deformation quantization for an arbitrary polynomial Poisson algebra A. We examine the Hochschild cohomology group H^3(A) and find that if a deformation of A exists it can be given by bidifferential operators. We then compute an explicit third order deformation quantization of A and show that it comes from a quantized enveloping algebra. We show that the deformation extends to a fourth order deformation if and only if the quantized enveloping algebra gives a fourth order deformation; moreover we give an example where the deformation does not extend. A correction term to the third order quantization given by the enveloping algebra is computed, which precisely cancels the obstruction.
An A-infinity algebra is a generalization of a associative algebra, and an L-infinity algebra is a generalization of a Lie algebra. In this paper, we show that an L-infinity algebra with an invariant inner product determines a cycle in the homology of the complex of metric ordinary graphs. Since the cyclic cohomology of a Lie algebra with an invariant inner product determines infinitesimal deformations of the Lie algebra into an L-infinity algebra with an invariant inner product, this construction shows that a cyclic cocycle of a Lie algebra determines a cycle in the homology of the graph complex. In this paper a simple proof of the corresponding result for A-infinity algebras, which was proved in a different manner in an earlier paper, is given.