Higgs bundles without geometry

Abstract

Higgs bundles appeared a few decades ago as solutions to certain equations from physics and have attracted much attention in geometry as well as other areas of mathematics and physics. Here, we take a very informal stroll through some aspects of linear algebra that anticipate the deeper structure in the moduli space of Higgs bundles. (This note was produced for the MFO Snapshots of Modern Mathematics series, which is "designed to promote the understanding and appreciation of modern mathematics and mathematical research in the interested public world-wide.")

10 pages, 5 figures -- Final version