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Deformation Theory Seminar

Wednesday, September 14, 2022 - 2:00pm

Eli Hawkins

U York, Canada

Location

University of Pennsylvania

https://upenn.zoom.us/s/93725935963

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A diagram of algebras is a functor from some small category to a category of associative algebras. The defining properties include that the maps must be homomorphisms. This is a cubic condition, therefore deformations of a diagram of algebras cannot be described by the quadratic Maurer-Cartan equation of a differential graded Lie algebra. This suggests the presence of a natural L-infinity algebra.
 
Hochschild cohomology generalizes to diagrams of algebras, and this is constructed most naturally from a double complex. The “asymplicial” subcomplex is given by deleting the bottom row, and first order deformations are described in asymplicial cohomology.
 
In this talk, I will describe an operad, mQuilt, that acts on the Hochschild bicomplex (and asymplicial subcomplex) of a diagram of algebras. I will describe an operad homomorphism from L-infinity to mQuilt, thus giving L-infinity algebra structures on both complexes. The Maurer-Cartan equation on the asymplicial complex describes deformations of diagrams of algebras.
 
I also construct an operad homomorphism from the (degree shifted) Gerstenhaber operad to the homology, H(mQuilt). This directly proves that the Hochschild and asymplicial cohomologies of a diagram of algebras are Gerstenhaber algebras.