The topology of Baumslag-Solitar representations

英文摘要：

Let $Γ=\langle a,b | a b^{p} a^{-1} = b^{q}\rangle$ be a Baumslag--Solitar group and $G$ be a complex reductive algebraic group with maximal compact subgroup $K<G$. We show that, when $p$ and $q$ are relatively prime with distinct absolute values, there is a strong deformation retraction retraction of $Hom(Γ,G)$ onto $Hom(Γ,K)$.