Chern-Simons gauge theory : 20 years after ; [the workshop Chern-Simons Gauge Theory: 20 Years After was held at the Max-Planck-Institute for Mathematics in Bonn from August 2 until August 7, 2009

Jørgen E. Andersen ... [et Al.], Editors. Proceedings Of A Workshop Held At The Max-planck-institute For Mathematics In Bonn, Aug. 3-7, 2009. Includes Bibliographical References. Remarks on Wilson loops and Seifert loops in Chern-Simons theory Quantum field theory and the volume conjecture Computational aspects in Reidemeister torsion and Chern-Simons theories Functional integration and abelian link invariants Chern-Simons invariants, SO(3) instantons, and $\mathbb {Z}/2$ homology cobordism Extending the $SU(3)$ Casson invariant to rational homology 3-spheres Decomposition of Witten-Reshetikhin-Turaev invariant: Linking pairing and modular forms Representations and the colored Jones polynomial of a torus knot Eta-invariants and anomalies in $U/1$ Chern-Simons theory Delta-groupoids and ideal triangulations Invariants of knots and 3-manifolds derived from the equivariant linking pairing Chern-Simons theory, the $1/N$ expansion, and string theory Global Lorentzian geometry from lightlike geodesics: What does an observer in (2+1)-gravity see? Spin foam state sums and Chern-Simons theory Representations of the Ptolemy groupoid, Johnson homomorphisms, and finite type invariants Yang-Mills in two dimensions and Chern-Simons in three Intersection pairings on spaces of connections and Chern-Simons theory on Seifert manifolds Fermionization and convergent perturbation expansions in Chern-Simons gauge theory Analytic continuation of Chern-Simons theory. In 1989, Edward Witten discovered a deep relationship between quantum field theory and knot theory, and this beautiful discovery created a new field of research called Chern-Simons theory. This field has the remarkable feature of intertwining a large number of diverse branches of research in mathematics and physics, among them low-dimensional topology, differential geometry, quantum algebra, functional and stochastic analysis, quantum gravity, and string theory. The 20-year anniversary of Witten's discovery provided an opportunity to bring together researchers working in Chern-Simons theory for a meeting, and the resulting conference, which took place during the summer of 2009 at the Max Planck Institute for Mathematics in Bonn, included many of the leading experts in the field. This volume documents the activities of the conference and presents several original research articles, including another monumental paper by Witten that is sure to stimulate further activity in this and related fields. This collection will provide an excellent overview of the current research directions and recent progress in Chern-Simons gauge theory.