Mon, 23 Feb 2026
16:00
C6

Non-abelian Leopoldt conjectures

Andrew Graham
(University of Oxford)
Abstract

The classical Leopoldt conjecture predicts that the global units of a number field (tensored with Qp) inject into the local units at p. In this talk, I'll discuss some non-abelian generalisations of this in the setting of Galois representations.

Mon, 09 Feb 2026
16:00
C6

Multiplicative recurrence and pretentious number theory

Sun Kai Leung
(University of Oxford)
Abstract

Recurrence is central in ergodic Ramsey theory, and its multiplicative analogue is only now emerging. In this talk, I will define multiplicative recurrence, give illustrative examples, and explain how pretentious number theory is applied to establish it.

Thu, 04 Dec 2025
11:00
C6

Paradoxical decompositions and spectral gaps for linear group actions

Emmanuel Breuillard
(Oxford University)
Abstract
By a celebrated theorem of Tarski, a (discrete) group action has no finitely additive invariant measure  (i.e. is "non-amenable") if and only if it exhibits a paradoxical decomposition, and if and only if it admits a spectral gap. We prove yet another equivalence by introducing the notion of "ping-pong with overlaps", which we then apply to characterise non-amenable algebraic actions of linear groups over any field and show that they are uniformly non-amenable uniformly over all fields. The proof makes key use of diophantine heights. Joint work with Oren Becker.
Fri, 28 Nov 2025
15:00
C6

The Gibbons-Hawking ansatz and hyper-Kähler quotients

Elvar Atlason
(UCL)
Abstract

 Hyper-Kähler manifolds are rigid geometric structures. They have three different symplectic and complex structures, in direct analogy with the quaternions. Being Ricci-flat, they solve the vacuum Einstein equations, and so there has been considerable interest among physicists to explicitly construct such spaces. We will discuss in detail the examples arising from the Gibbons-Hawking ansatz. These give concrete descriptions of the metric, giving many examples to work with. They also lead to the generalised classification as hyper-Kähler quotients by P.B. Kronheimer, with one such space for each finite subgroup of SU(2). Finally, we will look at the McKay correspondence, relating the finite subgroups of SU(2) with the simple Lie algebras of type A,D,E.

Thu, 06 Nov 2025
11:00
C6

A non-definability result in continuous model theory

Yizhi Li
(University of Oxford)
Abstract

This talk focuses on the logic side of the following result: the non-definability of free independence in the theory of tracial von Neumann algebras and C*-probability spaces. I will introduce continuous model theory, which is suitable for the study of metric structures. Definability in the continuous setting differs slightly from that in the discrete case. I will introduce its definition, give examples of definable sets, and prove an equivalent ultrapower condition of it. A. Berenstein and C. W. Henson exposited model theory for probability spaces in 2023, which was done with continuous model theory. It makes it natural for us to consider the definability of the notion of free independence in probability spaces. I will explain our result, which gives an example of a non-definable set.

This is work with William Boulanger and Emma Harvey, supervised by Jenny Pi and Jakub Curda.

Thu, 20 Nov 2025
11:00
C6

Character rigidity and ergodic actions of non-uniform higher rank lattices

Alon Dogon
(Weizmann Institute)
Abstract

The theory of characters for infinite groups, initiated by Thoma, is a natural generalization of the representation theory of finite groups. More precisely, a character on a discrete group is a normalised positive definite function which is conjugation invariant and extremal. Connes conjectured a rigidity result for characters of an important family of discrete groups, namely, irreducible lattices in higher-rank semisimple Lie groups. The conjecture states that every character is either the trace of a finite-dimensional representation, or vanishes off the center. This rigidity property implies the Stuck-Zimmer conjecture for such lattices, namely, ergodic actions are either essentially transitive or essentially free. I will present a recent joint result with Michael Glasner, Yuval Gorfine, Liam Hanany and Arie Levit in which we prove that non-uniform irreducible lattices in higher-rank semisimple groups are character rigid. As a result, we also obtain a resolution of the Stuck-Zimmer conjecture for all non-uniform lattices.

Thu, 25 Sep 2025
11:00
C6

Free information geometry and the large-n limit of random matrices

David Jekel
(University of Copenhagen)
Abstract

I will describe recent developments in information geometry (the study of optimal transport and entropy) for the setting of free probability.  One of the main goals of free probability is to model the large-n behavior of several $n \times n$ matrices $(X_1^{(n)},\dots,X_m^{(n)})$ chosen according to a sufficiently nice joint distribution that has a similar formula for each n (for instance, a density of the form constant times $e^{-n^2 \tr_n(p(x))}$ where $p$ is a non-commutative polynomial).  The limiting object is a tuple $(X_1,\dots,X_m)$ of operators from a von Neumann algebra.  We want the entropy and the optimal transportation distance of the probability distributions on $n \times n$ matrix tuples converge in some sense to their free probabilistic analogs, and so to obtain a theory of Wasserstein information geometry for the free setting.  I will present both negative results showing unavoidable difficulties in the free setting, and positive results showing that nonetheless several crucial aspects of information geometry do adapt.

Thu, 19 Jun 2025
12:00
C6

Local behaviour of solutions to non-local kinetic equations

Amélie Loher
(University of Cambridge)
Abstract

We will discuss local regularity properties for solutions to non-local equations naturally arising in kinetic theory. We will focus on the Strong Harnack inequality for global solutions to a non-local kinetic equation in divergence form. We will explain the connection to the Boltzmann equation and we will mention a few consequences on the asymptotic behaviour of the solutions.

Tue, 17 Jun 2025
14:00
C6

Lagrangian mean curvature flow out of conical singularities

Spandan Ghosh
(University of Oxford)
Abstract

Lagrangian mean curvature flow (LMCF) is a way to deform Lagrangian submanifolds inside a Calabi-Yau manifold according to the negative gradient of the area functional. There are influential conjectures about LMCF due to Thomas-Yau and Joyce, describing the long-time behaviour of the flow, singularity formation, and how one may flow past singularities. In this talk, we will show how to flow past a conically singular Lagrangian by gluing in expanders asymptotic to the cone, generalizing an earlier result by Begley-Moore. We solve the problem by a direct P.D.E.-based approach, along the lines of recent work by Lira-Mazzeo-Pluda-Saez on the network flow. The main technical ingredient we use is the notion of manifolds with corners and a-corners, as introduced by Joyce following earlier work of Melrose.

Tue, 10 Jun 2025
14:00
C6

Nearly G2-structures and G2-Laplacian co-flows.

Jakob Stein
(UNICAMP )
Abstract

In this talk, we discuss nearly G2 structures, which define positive Einstein metrics, and are, up to scale, critical points of a geometric flow called (modified) Laplacian co-flow. We will discuss a recent joint work with Jason Lotay showing that many of these nearly G2 critical points are unstable for the flow. 

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