Mini course “Vertex operator algebras and their representations”

Vertex operator algebras have been a topic of interest in mathematical physics for several decades, as they constitute one possible approach to formalize physical concepts from conformal field theory. They have relations to several other areas of mathematics, most notably to the theory of finite simple groups. This specific relation lead in fact to the award of the Fields Medal to Professor Richard Borcherds at the International Congress of Mathematicians in Berlin in 1998. Professor Gannon is the author of a well-known monograph on this topic.

The minicourse will consist of five lectures of 90 minutes each. The lectures will be aimed at students, primarily at the graduate level. We hope to attract about 20 participants from Memorial University, Atlantic Canada, and other parts of Canada, and possibly some international participants.