Introduction to Toric Varieties

This course will consist of eight lectures on Thursdays 13.15-15.00 in seminar room 3418 at the Department of Mathematics at KTH.

Toric varieties are algebraic varieties defined by combinatorial data, and there is a wonderful interplay between algebra, combinatorics and geometry involved in their study. Many of the key concepts of abstract algebraic geometry (for example, constructing a variety by gluing affine pieces, or computing the global sections of a line bundle) have very concrete interpretations in the toric case, making toric varieties an ideal tool for introducing students to abstract concepts. One lecture per week, with lectures focused on examples and computations.