Kac Moody Lie Algebras And Related Topics

As the Proceedings of the 1984 Canadian Mathematical Society's Summer Seminar, this book focuses on some advances in the theory of semisimple Lie algebras and some direct outgrowths of that theory. The following papers are of particular interest: an important survey article by R. Block and R. Wilson on restricted simple Lie algebras, a survey of universal enveloping algebras of semisimple Lie algebras by W. Borho, a course on Kac-Moody Lie algebras by I. G. Macdonald with an extensive bibliography of this field by Georgia Benkart, and a course on formal groups by M. Hazewinkel. Because of the expository surveys and courses, the book will be especially useful to graduate students in Lie theory, as well as to researchers in the field.

This volume is the proceedings of the Ramanujan International Symposium on Kac-Moody Lie algebras and their applications. The symposium provided researchers in mathematics and physics with the opportunity to discuss new developments in this rapidly-growing area of research. The book contains several excellent articles with new and significant results. It is suitable for graduate students and researchers working in Kac-Moody Lie algebras, their applications, and related areas of research.

The 1984 classification of the finite-dimensional restricted simple Lie algebras over an algebraically closed field of characteristic $p>7$ provided the impetus for a Special Year of Lie Algebras, held at the University of Wisconsin, Madison, during 1987-88. Work done during the Special Year and afterward put researchers much closer toward a solution of the long-standing problem of determining the finite-dimensional simple Lie algebras over an algebraically closed field of characteristic $p>7$. This volume contains the proceedings of a conference on Lie algebras and related topics, held in May 1988 to mark the end of the Special Year. The conference featured lectures on Lie algebras of prime characteristic, algebraic groups, combinatorics and representation theory, and Kac-Moody and Virasoro algebras. Many facets of recent research on Lie theory are reflected in the papers presented here, testifying to the richness and diversity of this topic.

These proceedings are from the Tenth International Conference on Representations of Algebras and Related Topics (ICRA X) held at The Fields Institute. In addition to the traditional ''instructional'' workshop preceding the conference, there were also workshops on ''Commutative Algebra, Algebraic Geometry and Representation Theory'', ''Finite Dimensional Algebras, Algebraic Groups and Lie Theory'', and ''Quantum Groups and Hall Algebras''. These workshops reflect the latest developments and the increasing interest in areas that are closely related to the representation theory of finite dimensional associative algebras. Although these workshops were organized separately, their topics are strongly interrelated. The workshop on Commutative Algebra, Algebraic Geometry and Representation Theory surveyed various recently established connections, such as those pertaining to the classification of vector bundles or Cohen-Macaulay modules over Noetherian rings, coherent sheaves on curves, or ideals in Weyl algebras. In addition, methods from algebraic geometry or commutative algebra relating to quiver representations and varieties of modules were presented. The workshop on Finite Dimensional Algebras, Algebraic Groups and Lie Theory surveyed developments in finite dimensional algebras and infinite dimensional Lie theory, especially as the two areas interact and may have future interactions. The workshop on Quantum Groups and Hall Algebras dealt with the different approaches of using the representation theory of quivers (and species) in order to construct quantum groups, working either over finite fields or over the complex numbers. In particular, these proceedings contain a quite detailed outline of the use of perverse sheaves in order to obtain canonical bases. The book is recommended for graduate students and researchers in algebra and geometry.

This is the long awaited follow-up to Lie Algebras, Part I which covered a major part of the theory of Kac-Moody algebras, stressing primarily their mathematical structure. Part II deals mainly with the representations and applications of Lie Algebras and contains many cross references to Part I. The theoretical part largely deals with the representation theory of Lie algebras with a triangular decomposition, of which Kac-Moody algebras and the Virasoro algebra are prime examples. After setting up the general framework of highest weight representations, the book continues to treat topics as the Casimir operator and the Weyl-Kac character formula, which are specific for Kac-Moody algebras. The applications have a wide range. First, the book contains an exposition on the role of finite-dimensional semisimple Lie algebras and their representations in the standard and grand unified models of elementary particle physics. A second application is in the realm of soliton equations and their infinite-dimensional symmetry groups and algebras. The book concludes with a chapter on conformal field theory and the importance of the Virasoro and Kac-Moody algebras therein.

This volume reflects the proceedings of the International Conference on Representations of Affine and Quantum Affine Algebras and Their Applications held at North Carolina State University (Raleigh). In recent years, the theory of affine and quantum affine Lie algebras has become an important area of mathematical research with numerous applications in other areas of mathematics and physics. Three areas of recent progress are the focus of this volume: affine and quantum affine algebras and their generalizations, vertex operator algebras and their representations, and applications in combinatorics and statistical mechanics. Talks given by leading international experts at the conference offered both overviews on the subjects and current research results. The book nicely presents the interplay of these topics recently occupying "centre stage" in the theory of infinite dimensional Lie theory.