Algebraic description of spacetime foam

A mathematical formalism for treating spacetime topology as a quantum observable is provided. We describe spacetime foam entirely in algebraic terms. To implement the correspondence principle we express the classical spacetime manifold of general relativity and the commutative coordinates of its events by means of appropriate limit constructions.Comment: 34 pages, LaTeX2e, the section concerning classical spacetimes in the limit essentially correcte

Labelled transition systems as a Stone space

A fully abstract and universal domain model for modal transition systems and refinement is shown to be a maximal-points space model for the bisimulation quotient of labelled transition systems over a finite set of events. In this domain model we prove that this quotient is a Stone space whose compact, zero-dimensional, and ultra-metrizable Hausdorff topology measures the degree of bisimilarity such that image-finite labelled transition systems are dense. Using this compactness we show that the set of labelled transition systems that refine a modal transition system, its ''set of implementations'', is compact and derive a compactness theorem for Hennessy-Milner logic on such implementation sets. These results extend to systems that also have partially specified state propositions, unify existing denotational, operational, and metric semantics on partial processes, render robust consistency measures for modal transition systems, and yield an abstract interpretation of compact sets of labelled transition systems as Scott-closed sets of modal transition systems.Comment: Changes since v2: Metadata updat

Chiral expansion and Macdonald deformation of two-dimensional Yang-Mills theory

We derive the analog of the large $N$ Gross-Taylor holomorphic string expansion for the refinement of $q$-deformed $U(N)$ Yang-Mills theory on a compact oriented Riemann surface. The derivation combines Schur-Weyl duality for quantum groups with the Etingof-Kirillov theory of generalized quantum characters which are related to Macdonald polynomials. In the unrefined limit we reproduce the chiral expansion of $q$-deformed Yang-Mills theory derived by de Haro, Ramgoolam and Torrielli. In the classical limit $q=1$, the expansion defines a new $\beta$-deformation of Hurwitz theory wherein the refined partition function is a generating function for certain parameterized Euler characters, which reduce in the unrefined limit $\beta=1$ to the orbifold Euler characteristics of Hurwitz spaces of holomorphic maps. We discuss the geometrical meaning of our expansions in relation to quantum spectral curves and $\beta$-ensembles of matrix models arising in refined topological string theory.Comment: 45 pages; v2: References adde

Differential KO-theory: constructions, computations, and applications

We provide a systematic and detailed treatment of differential refinements of KO-theory. We explain how various flavors capture geometric aspects in different but related ways, highlighting the utility of each. While general axiomatics exist, no explicit constructions seem to have appeared before. This fills a gap in the literature in which K-theory is usually worked out leaving KO-theory essentially untouched, with only scattered partial information in print. We compare to the complex case, highlighting which constructions follow analogously and which are much more subtle. We construct a pushforward and differential refinements of genera, leading to a Riemann-Roch theorem for $\widehat{\rm KO}$-theory. We also construct the corresponding Atiyah-Hirzebruch spectral sequence (AHSS) and explicitly identify the differentials, including ones which mix geometric and topological data. This allows us to completely characterize the image of the Pontrjagin character. Then we illustrate with examples and applications, including higher tangential structures, Adams operations, and a differential Wu formula.Comment: 105 pages, very minor changes, comments welcom

Orientifolds and the Refined Topological String

We study refined topological string theory in the presence of orientifolds by counting second-quantized BPS states in M-theory. This leads us to propose a new integrality condition for both refined and unrefined topological strings when orientifolds are present. We define the SO(2N) refined Chern-Simons theory which computes refined open string amplitudes for branes wrapping Seifert three-manifolds. We use the SO(2N) refined Chern-Simons theory to compute new invariants of torus knots that generalize the Kauffman polynomials. At large N, the SO(2N) refined Chern-Simons theory on the three-sphere is dual to refined topological strings on an orientifold of the resolved conifold, generalizing the Gopakumar-Sinha-Vafa duality. Finally, we use the (2,0) theory to define and solve refined Chern-Simons theory for all ADE gauge groups

The categorical limit of a sequence of dynamical systems

Modeling a sequence of design steps, or a sequence of parameter settings, yields a sequence of dynamical systems. In many cases, such a sequence is intended to approximate a certain limit case. However, formally defining that limit turns out to be subject to ambiguity. Depending on the interpretation of the sequence, i.e. depending on how the behaviors of the systems in the sequence are related, it may vary what the limit should be. Topologies, and in particular metrics, define limits uniquely, if they exist. Thus they select one interpretation implicitly and leave no room for other interpretations. In this paper, we define limits using category theory, and use the mentioned relations between system behaviors explicitly. This resolves the problem of ambiguity in a more controlled way. We introduce a category of prefix orders on executions and partial history preserving maps between them to describe both discrete and continuous branching time dynamics. We prove that in this category all projective limits exist, and illustrate how ambiguity in the definition of limits is resolved using an example. Moreover, we show how various problems with known topological approaches are now resolved, and how the construction of projective limits enables us to approximate continuous time dynamics as a sequence of discrete time systems.Comment: In Proceedings EXPRESS/SOS 2013, arXiv:1307.690