Morse theory, the topology of manifolds and energy landscapes

This meeting is both in-person and Zoom.

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Abstract: Morse theory is an area within differential topology which

allows for a direct study of the topology of a manifold by analysis of

smooth functions on it. Besides its many applications in mathematics,

notably in topology and geometry, Morse theory has been used in

theoretical physics to examine supersymmtry and gauge 

theories and recently has found applications in topological data

analysis. In the talk, the fundamental ideas of Morse theory will be

explained and then it will be shown how it can be applied to study the

the energy landsscape i.e. the potential energy surface of a molecule

at the example of short n-alkanes.