arXiv subjects
Publications and source records attributed to Stavros Garoufalidis.
It is well-known to the experts that multi-dimensional state integrals of products of Faddeev's quantum dilogarithm which arise in Quantum Topology can be written as finite sums of products of basic hypergeometric series in q=e^{2πiτ} and \tilde{q}=e^{-2πi/τ}. We illustrate this fact by giving a detailed proof for a family of one-dimensional integrals which includes state-integral invariants of 4_1 and 5_2 knots.
This is a survey talk on one of the best known quantum knot invariants, the colored Jones polynomial of a knot, and its relation to the algebraic/geometric topology and hyperbolic geometry of the knot complement. We review several aspects of the colored Jones polynomial, emphasizing modularity, stability and effective computations. The talk was given in the Mathematische Arbeitstagung June 24-July 1, 2011. Updated the bibliography.
In this paper we will promote the 3D index of an ideal triangulation T of an oriented cusped 3-manifold M (a collection of q-series with integer coefficients, introduced by Dimofte-Gaiotto-Gukov) to a topological invariant of oriented cusped hyperbolic 3-manifolds. To achieve our goal we show that (a) T admits an index structure if and only if T is 1-efficient and (b) if M is hyperbolic, it has a canonical set of 1-efficient ideal triangulations related by 2-3 and 0-2 moves which preserve the 3D index. We illustrate our results with several examples.
We prove that the colored HOMFLY polynomial of a link, colored by symmetric or exterior powers of the fundamental representation, is q-holonomic with respect to the color parameters. As a result, we obtain the existence of an (a,q) super-polynomial of all knots in 3-space. Our result has implications on the quantization of the SL(2,C) character variety of knots using ideal triangulations or the topological recursion, and motivates questions on the web approach to representation theory.
The paper contains a combinatorial theorem (the sequence of Newton polygons of a reccurent sequence of polynomials is quasi-linear) and two applications of it in classical and quantum topology, namely in the behavior of the $A$-polynomial and a fixed quantum invariant (such as the Jones polynomial) under filling. Our combinatorial theorem, which complements results of Calegari-Walker \cite{CW} and the author \cite{Ga4}, occupies the bulk of the paper and its proof requires the Lech-Mahler-Skolem theorem of $p$-adic analytic number theory combined with basic principles in polyhedral and tropical geometry.
The gluing equations of a cusped hyperbolic 3-manifold $M$ are a system of polynomial equations in the shapes of an ideal triangulation $\calT$ of $M$ that describe the complete hyperbolic structure of $M$ and its deformations. Given a Neumann-Zagier datum (comprising the shapes together with the gluing equations in a particular canonical form) we define a formal power series with coefficients in the invariant trace field of $M$ that should (a) agree with the asymptotic expansion of the Kashaev invariant to all orders, and (b) contain the nonabelian Reidemeister-Ray-Singer torsion of $M$ as its first subleading "1-loop" term. As a case study, we prove topological invariance of the 1-loop part of the constructed series and extend it into a formal power series of rational functions on the $\PSL(2,\BC)$ character variety of $M$. We provide a computer implementation of the first three terms of the series using the standard {\tt SnapPy} toolbox and check numerically the agreement of our torsion with the Reidemeister-Ray-Singer for all 59924 hyperbolic knots with at most 14 crossings. Finally, we explain how the definition of our series follows from the quantization of 3d hyperbolic geometry, using principles of Topological Quantum Field Theory. Our results have a straightforward extension to any 3-manifold $M$ with torus boundary components (not necessarily hyperbolic) that admits a regular ideal triangulation with respect to some $\PSL(2,\BC)$ representation.
We study q-holonomic sequences that arise as the colored Jones polynomial of knots in 3-space. The minimal-order recurrence for such a sequence is called the (non-commutative) A-polynomial of a knot. Using the "method of guessing", we obtain this polynomial explicitly for the K_p = (-2, 3, 3+2p) pretzel knots for p = -5, ..., 5. This is a particularly interesting family since the pairs (K_p, -K_{-p}) are geometrically similar (in particular, scissors congruent) with similar character varieties. Our computation of the non-commutative A-polynomial (a) complements the computation of the A-polynomial of the pretzel knots done by the first author and Mattman, (b) supports the AJ Conjecture for knots with reducible A-polynomial and (c) numerically computes the Kashaev invariant of pretzel knots in linear time. In a later publication, we will use the numerical computation of the Kashaev invariant to numerically verify the Volume Conjecture for the above mentioned pretzel knots.
In a previous paper, we parametrized boundary-unipotent representations of a 3-manifold group into SL(n,C) using Ptolemy coordinates, which were inspired by A-coordinates on higher Teichmüller space due to Fock and Goncharov. In this paper, we parametrize representations into PGL(n,C) using shape coordinates which are a 3-dimensional analogue of Fock and Goncharov's X-coordinates. These coordinates satisfy equations generalizing Thurston's gluing equations. These equations are of Neumann-Zagier type and satisfy symplectic relations with applications in quantum topology. We also explore a duality between the Ptolemy coordinates and the shape coordinates.
Using Chebyshev polynomials combined with some mild combinatorics, we provide a new formula for the analytical planar limit of a random matrix model with a one-cut potential $V$. For potentials $V(x)=x^{2}/2-\sum_{n\ge1}a_{n}x^{n}/n$, as a power series in all $a_{n}$, the formal Taylor expansion of the analytic planar limit is exactly the formal planar limit. In the case $V$ is analytic in infinitely many variables $\{a_{n}\}_{n\ge1}$ (on the appropriate spaces), the planar limit is also an analytic function in infinitely many variables and we give quantitative versions of where this is defined. Particularly useful in enumerative combinatorics are the gradings of $V$, $V_{t}(x)=x^{2}/2-\sum_{n\ge1}a_{n}t^{n/2}x^{n}/n$ and $V_{t}(x)=x^{2}/2-\sum_{n\ge3}a_{n}t^{n/2 -1}x^{n}/n$. The associated planar limits $F(t)$ as functions of $t$ count planar diagram sorted by the number of edges respectively faces. We point out a method of computing the asymptotic of the coefficients of $F(t)$ using the combination of the \emph{wzb} method and the resolution of singularies. This is illustrated in several computations revolving around the important extreme potential $V_{t}(x)=x^{2}/2+\log(1-\sqrt{t}x)$ and its variants. This particular example gives a quantitive and sharp answer to a conjecture of t'Hoofts which states that if the potential is analytic, the planar limit is also analytic.
A sequence $f_n(q)$ is $q$-holonomic if it satisfies a nontrivial linear recurrence with coefficients polynomials in $q$ and $q^n$. Our main theorems state that $q$-holonomicity is preserved under twisting, i.e., replacing $q$ by $ωq$ where $ω$ is a complex root of unity, and under the substitution $q \to q^α$ where $α$ is a rational number. Our proofs are constructive, work in the multivariate setting of $\partial$-finite sequences and are implemented in the Mathematica package HolonomicFunctions. Our results are illustrated by twisting natural $q$-holonomic sequences which appear in quantum topology, namely the colored Jones polynomial of pretzel knots and twist knots. The recurrence of the twisted colored Jones polynomial can be used to compute the asymptotics of the Kashaev invariant of a knot at an arbitrary complex root of unity.
Nahm sums are $q$-series of a special hypergeometric type that appear in character formulas in Conformal Field Theory, and give rise to elements of the Bloch group, and have interesting modularity properties. In our paper, we show how Nahm sums arise naturally in Quantum Knot Theory, namely we prove the stability of the coefficients of the colored Jones polynomial of an alternating link and present a Nahm sum formula for the resulting power series, defined in terms of a reduced diagram of the alternating link. The Nahm sum formula comes with a computer implementation, illustrated in numerous examples of proven or conjectural identities among $q$-series.
Genus 2 mutation is the process of cutting a 3-manifold along an embedded closed genus 2 surface, twisting by the hyper-elliptic involution, and gluing back. This paper compares genus 2 mutation with the better-known Conway mutation in the context of knots in the 3-sphere. Despite the fact that any Conway mutation can be achieved by a sequence of at most two genus 2 mutations, the invariants that are preserved by genus 2 mutation are a proper subset of those preserved by Conway mutation. In particular, while the Alexander and Jones polynomials are preserved by genus 2 mutation, the HOMFLY-PT polynomial is not. In the case of the sl_2-Khovanov homology, which may or may not be invariant under Conway mutation, we give an example where genus 2 mutation changes this homology. Finally, using these techniques, we exhibit examples of knots with the same same colored Jones polynomials, HOMFLY-PT polynomial, Kauffman polynomial, signature and volume, but different Khovanov homology.
A spin network is a cubic ribbon graph labeled by representations of $\mathrm{SU}(2)$. Spin networks are important in various areas of Mathematics (3-dimensional Quantum Topology), Physics (Angular Momentum, Classical and Quantum Gravity) and Chemistry (Atomic Spectroscopy). The evaluation of a spin network is an integer number. The main results of our paper are: (a) an existence theorem for the asymptotics of evaluations of arbitrary spin networks (using the theory of $G$-functions), (b) a rationality property of the generating series of all evaluations with a fixed underlying graph (using the combinatorics of the chromatic evaluation of a spin network), (c) rigorous effective computations of our results for some $6j$-symbols using the Wilf-Zeilberger theory, and (d) a complete analysis of the regular Cube $12j$ spin network (including a non-rigorous guess of its Stokes constants), in the appendix.
Rosso and Jones gave a formula for the colored Jones polynomial of a torus knot, colored by an irreducible representation of a simple Lie algebra. The Rosso-Jones formula involves a plethysm function, unknown in general. We provide an explicit formula for the second plethysm of an arbitrary representation of $\fsl_3$, which allows us to give an explicit formula for the colored Jones polynomial of the trefoil, and more generally, for T(2,n) torus knots. We give two independent proofs of our plethysm formula, one of which uses the work of Carini-Remmel. Our formula for the $\fsl_3$ colored Jones polynomial of T(2,n) torus knots allows us to verify the Degree Conjecture for those knots, to efficiently the $\fsl_3$ Witten-Reshetikhin-Turaev invariants of the Poincare sphere, and to guess a Groebner basis for recursion ideal of the $\fsl_3$ colored Jones polynomial of the trefoil.
If $M$ is a finite volume complete hyperbolic 3-manifold with one cusp and no 2-torsion, the geometric component $X_M$ of its $\SL(2,\BC)$-character variety is an affine complex curve, which is smooth at the discrete faithful representation $ρ_0$. Porti defined a non-abelian Reidemeister torsion in a neighborhood of $ρ_0$ in $X_M$ and observed that it is an analytic map, which is the germ of a unique rational function on $X_M$. In the present paper we prove that (a) the torsion of a representation lies in at most quadratic extension of the invariant trace field of the representation, and (b) the existence of a polynomial relation of the torsion of a representation and the trace of the meridian or the longitude. We postulate that the coefficients of the $1/N^k$-asymptotics of the Parametrized Volume Conjecture for $M$ are elements of the field of rational functions on $X_M$.
To a knot in 3-space, one can associate a sequence of Laurent polynomials, whose $n$th term is the $n$th colored Jones polynomial. The paper is concerned with the asymptotic behavior of the value of the $n$th colored Jones polynomial at $e^{\a/n}$, when $\a$ is a fixed complex number and $n$ tends to infinity. We analyze this asymptotic behavior to all orders in $1/n$ when $\a$ is a sufficiently small complex number. In addition, we give upper bounds for the coefficients and degree of the $n$th colored Jones polynomial, with applications to upper bounds in the Generalized Volume Conjecture. Work of Agol-Dunfield-Storm-W.Thurston implies that our bounds are asymptotically optimal. Moreover, we give results for the Generalized Volume Conjecture when $\a$ is near $2 πi$. Our proofs use crucially the cyclotomic expansion of the colored Jones function, due to Habiro.
We give a simple sufficient condition for a spun-normal surface in an ideal triangulation to be incompressible, namely that it is a vertex surface with non-empty boundary which has a quadrilateral in each tetrahedron. While this condition is far from being necessary, it is powerful enough to give two new results: the existence of alternating knots with non-integer boundary slopes, and a proof of the Slope Conjecture for a large class of 2-fusion knots. While the condition and conclusion are purely topological, the proof uses the Culler-Shalen theory of essential surfaces arising from ideal points of the character variety, as reinterpreted by Thurston and Yoshida. The criterion itself comes from the work of Kabaya, which we place into the language of normal surface theory. This allows the criterion to be easily applied, and gives the framework for proving that the surface is incompressible. We also explore which spun-normal surfaces arise from ideal points of the deformation variety. In particular, we give an example where no vertex or fundamental surface arises in this way.
We show that the A-polynomial $A_n$ of the 1-parameter family of pretzel knots $K_n=(-2,3,3+2n)$ satisfies a linear recursion relation of order 4 with explicit constant coefficients and initial conditions. Our proof combines results of Tamura-Yokota and the second author. As a corollary, we show that the $A$-polynomial of $K_n$ and the mirror of $K_{-n}$ are related by an explicit $\GL(2,\BZ)$ action. We leave open the question of whether or not this action lifts to the quantum level.