Geometry & Topology Seminar

Derek Harland, University of Leeds

"Skyrmions, instantons, and the spin-orbit force"

The Skyrme model is a geometric model of nuclear matter: it models atomic nuclei using maps from R^3 to S^3 that minimise a generalisation of the harmonic map energy.  In this talk I will describe a recent solution of a long-standing problem, namely that of deriving the spin-orbit force from this model.  If time allows, I will describe more recent work which seeks to fully describe the forces between nucleons by taking holonomy of self-dual Yang-Mill instantons.  The talk will be accessible to geometers and pure mathematicians, and no prior knowledge of nuclear physics will be assumed!

Zoom link: https://zoom.us/j/93859138328; Passcode: 436044