C*-Algebras Associated to Discrete and Dynamical Systems (08w5034)

Mathematicians, it is widely believed, derive perverse pleasure from studying incredibly complicated objects and ideas; but it is more accurate to say that they enjoy making seemingly complicated ideas simpler. This is the theme of the workshop "C*-algebras associated to discrete and dynamical structures". C*-algebras --- the complicated objects which have been used, among other things, to lay the mathematical foundations for quantum physics --- can often be seen as coming from something as simple as a collection of dots joined by arrows (a directed graph, in jargon). Better still, one can often decide whether such an algebra has an important property by looking at its graph: does the graph have loops? are there infinitely many dots? And so on. Our workshop will explore the different kinds of simple(r) objects from which a C*-algebra can be built, and the extent to which one can determine the structure of the C*-algebra by looking at elementary properties of this object.

The Banff International Research Station for Mathematical Innovation and Discovery (BIRS) is a collaborative Canada-US-Mexico venture that provides an environment for creative interaction as well as the exchange of ideas, knowledge, and methods within the Mathematical Sciences, with related disciplines and with industry. The research station is located at The Banff Centre in Alberta and is supported by Canada's Natural Science and Engineering Research Council (NSERC), the US National Science Foundation (NSF), Alberta's Advanced Education and Technology, and Mexico's Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnologí­a (CONACYT).