Related papers: Representations of surface groups in the projectiv…

Let G be a connected, compact, semisimple Lie group. It is known that for a compact closed orientable surface $\Sigma$ of genus $l >1$, the order of the group $H^2(\Sigma,\pi_1(G))$ is equal to the number of connected components of the…

We classify the connected components of the space of representations of the fundamental group of a closed oriented surface of genus $\geq 2$ in $Sp(4,{\mathbf R})$. We prove that this is equivalent to classifying the connected components of…

We carry an intrinsic approach to the study of the connectedness of the moduli space $\mathcal{M}_G$ of $G$-Higgs bundles, over a compact Riemann surface, when $G$ is a complex reductive (not necessarily connected) Lie group. We prove that…

We determine the number of connected components of the moduli space for representations of a surface group in the general linear group.

Using the $L^2$ norm of the Higgs field as a Morse function, we study the moduli spaces of $U(p,q)$-Higgs bundles over a Riemann surface. We require that the genus of the surface be at least two, but place no constraints on $(p,q)$. A key…

This expository paper details the theory of rank one Higgs bundles over a closed Riemann surface X and their relationship to representations of the fundamental group of X. We construct an equivalence between the deformation theories of flat…

We study the Hitchin component in the space of representations of the fundamental group of a Riemann surface into a split real simple Lie group in the rank 2 case. We prove that such representations are described by a conformal structure…

We show that for every nonelementary representation of a surface group into $SL(2,{\mathbb C})$ there is a Riemann surface structure such that the Higgs bundle associated to the representation lies outside the discriminant locus of the…

Using the $L^2$-norm of the Higgs field as a Morse function, we count the number of connected components of the moduli space of parabolic $U(p,q)$-Higgs bundles over a Riemann surface with a finite number of marked points, under certain…

We consider the moduli space of polystable $L$-twisted $G$-Higgs bundles over a compact Riemann surface $X$, where $G$ is a real reductive Lie group, and $L$ is a holomorphic line bundle over $X$. Evaluating the Higgs field at a basis of…

In math.SG/0303255, we discussed the connected components of the space of surface group representations for any compact connected semisimple Lie group and any closed compact (orientable or nonorientable) surface. In this sequel, we…

For a fixed compact Riemann surface X, of genus at least 2, we count the number of connected components of the moduli space of maximal Higgs bundles over X for the hermitian groups $PSp(2n,R)$, $PSO^*(2n)$, $PSO_0(2,n)$ and $E_6^{-14}$.…

The moduli spaces for Higgs bundles associated to real Lie groups and a closed Riemann surface have multiple connected components. This survey provides a compendium of results concerning the counting of these components in cases where the…

Using the L^2 norm of the Higgs field as a Morse function, we study the moduli spaces of U(p,q)-Higgs bundles over a Riemann surface. We require that the genus of the surface be at least two, but place no constraints on (p,q). A key step is…

In this article we give a geometric interpretation of the Hitchin component for PSL(4,R) in the representation variety of a closed oriented surface of higher genus. We show that representations in the Hitchin component are precisely the…

We study parabolic G-Higgs bundles over a compact Riemann surface with fixed punctures, when G is a real reductive Lie group, and establish a correspondence between these objects and representations of the fundamental group of the punctured…

We introduce the notion of generalized hyperpolygon, which arises as a representation, in the sense of Nakajima, of a comet-shaped quiver. We identify these representations with rigid geometric figures, namely pairs of polygons: one in the…

Let S be a surface of genus g with n points removed, G a connected Lie group, and X(G) the moduli space of representations of the fundamental group of S into G. We compute the fundamental group of X(G) when n>0 and G is a real or complex…

Let $X$ be a compact connected Riemann surface of genus at least two, and let ${G}$ be a connected semisimple affine algebraic group defined over $\mathbb C$. For any $\delta \in \pi_1({G})$, we prove that the moduli space of semistable…

We count the connected components in the moduli space of PU(p,q)-representations of the fundamental group for a closed oriented surface. The components are labelled by pairs of integers which arise as topological invariants of the flat…