Coxeter groupIn mathematics, a Coxeter group, named after H. S. M. Coxeter, is an abstract group that admits a formal description in terms of reflections (or kaleidoscopic mirrors). Indeed, the finite Coxeter groups are precisely the finite Euclidean reflection groups; the symmetry groups of regular polyhedra are an example. However, not all Coxeter groups are finite, and not all can be described in terms of symmetries and Euclidean reflections. Coxeter groups were introduced in 1934 as abstractions of reflection groups , and finite Coxeter groups were classified in 1935 .
Maximal torusIn the mathematical theory of compact Lie groups a special role is played by torus subgroups, in particular by the maximal torus subgroups. A torus in a compact Lie group G is a compact, connected, abelian Lie subgroup of G (and therefore isomorphic to the standard torus Tn). A maximal torus is one which is maximal among such subgroups. That is, T is a maximal torus if for any torus T′ containing T we have T = T′. Every torus is contained in a maximal torus simply by dimensional considerations.
Root systemIn mathematics, a root system is a configuration of vectors in a Euclidean space satisfying certain geometrical properties. The concept is fundamental in the theory of Lie groups and Lie algebras, especially the classification and representation theory of semisimple Lie algebras. Since Lie groups (and some analogues such as algebraic groups) and Lie algebras have become important in many parts of mathematics during the twentieth century, the apparently special nature of root systems belies the number of areas in which they are applied.
5 21 honeycombDISPLAYTITLE:5 21 honeycomb In geometry, the 521 honeycomb is a uniform tessellation of 8-dimensional Euclidean space. The symbol 521 is from Coxeter, named for the length of the 3 branches of its Coxeter-Dynkin diagram. By putting spheres at its vertices one obtains the densest-possible packing of spheres in 8 dimensions. This was proven by Maryna Viazovska in 2016 using the theory of modular forms. Viazovska was awarded the Fields Medal for this work in 2022.
E8 (mathematics)DISPLAYTITLE:E8 (mathematics) In mathematics, E8 is any of several closely related exceptional simple Lie groups, linear algebraic groups or Lie algebras of dimension 248; the same notation is used for the corresponding root lattice, which has rank 8. The designation E8 comes from the Cartan–Killing classification of the complex simple Lie algebras, which fall into four infinite series labeled An, Bn, Cn, Dn, and five exceptional cases labeled G2, F4, E6, E7, and E8. The E8 algebra is the largest and most complicated of these exceptional cases.
