The discrete vector-bundle Laplacian

The discrete vector-bundle Laplacian

Probability Seminar
Mar 21, 2012, 03:10 PM - 04:00 PM | 332 Evans Hall | Happening As Scheduled
Richard Kenyon, Brown University and MSRI
The classical matrix-tree theorem states that the determinant of the combinatorial Laplacian on a graph counts the number of spanning trees. We generalize this result to the Laplacian on a one- or two-dimensional vector bundle on a graph. Its determinant counts so-called "cycle-rooted spanning trees". This result allows us to probe the large-scale structure of spanning trees on planar graphs, as...