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Math-Physics Joint Seminar

Wednesday, October 25, 2017 - 2:00pm

Olaf Holm

SCGP

Location

University of Pennsylvania

DRL 4C2

Joint with Deformation seminar

I discuss the construction of L-infinity algebras including the special case of the Courant algebroid. Then I elaborate on the general relation between the data of an L-infinity algebra and a classical field theory in theoretical physics. It is argued that there is a one-to-one correspondence between consistent field theories and L-infinity algebras (up to reasonably defined isomorphisms), with the gauge algebra, interactions, etc. of a field theory being encoded in the higher brackets of an L-infinity algebra. I discuss double field theory as a non-trivial example.