English

Topological Quantum Field Theory: A Progress Report

High Energy Physics - Theory 2008-02-03 v1 alg-geom Algebraic Geometry Quantum Algebra q-alg

Abstract

A brief introduction to Topological Quantum Field Theory as well as a description of recent progress made in the field is presented. I concentrate mainly on the connection between Chern-Simons gauge theory and Vassiliev invariants, and Donaldson theory and its generalizations and Seiberg-Witten invariants. Emphasis is made on the usefulness of these relations to obtain explicit expressions for topological invariants, and on the universal structure underlying both systems.

Keywords

Cite

@article{arxiv.hep-th/9511037,
  title  = {Topological Quantum Field Theory: A Progress Report},
  author = {J. M. F. Labastida},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:hep-th/9511037},
  year   = {2008}
}

Comments

latex, 17 pages, talk given at the IV Fall Workshop on Differential Geometry and its Applications, 1995