Strebel differentials on stable curves and Kontsevich's proof of Witten's conjecture

Abstract

We define Strebel differentials for stable complex curves, prove the existence and uniqueness theorem that generalizes Strebel's theorem for smooth curves, prove that Strebel differentials form a continuous family over the moduli space of stable curves, and show how this construction can be applied to clarify a delicate point in Kontsevich's proof of Witten's conjecture.

45 pages, 9 figures. A significantly extended version