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# Path (topology)

In mathematics, a path in a topological space X is a continuous map f from the unit interval I = [0,1] to X

f : IX.

The initial point of the path is f(0) and the terminal point is f(1). One often speaks of a "path from x to y" where x and y are the initial and terminal points of the path. Note that a path is not just a subset of X which "looks like" a curve, it also includes a parametrization. For example, the maps f(x) = x and g(x) = x2 represent two different paths from 0 to 1 on the real line.

A loop in a X based at xX is a path from x to x. A loop may be equally well regarded as a map f : IX with f(0) = f(1) or as a continuous map from the unit circle S1 to X

f : S1X.

This is because S1 may be regarded as a quotient of I under the identification 0 ∼ 1.

A topological space for which the exists a path connecting any two points is said to be path-connected. Any space may be broken up into a set of path-connected components. The set of path-connected components of a space X is often denoted π0(X);

One can compose paths in a topological space in an obvious manner. Suppose f is a path from x to y and g is a path from y to z. The path fg is defined as the path obtained by first traversing f and then traversing g:

$fg(s) = \begin{cases}f(2s) & 0\leq s \leq \frac{1}{2} \\ g(2s-1) & \frac{1}{2} \leq s \leq 1\end{cases}$

It is important to note that path composition is not associative due to problems with parametrization.

## Homotopy theory

Paths and loops are extremely important in branch of algebraic topology called homotopy theory. A homotopy of paths makes precise the notion of continuously deforming a path while keeping its endpoints fixed.

Specifically, a homotopy of paths in X is a family of paths ft : IX such that

• ft(0) = x0 and ft(1) = x1 are fixed.
• the map F : I × IX given by F(s, t) = ft(s) is continuous.

The paths f0 and f1 connected by a homotopy are said to homotopic. One can likewise define a homotopy of loops keeping the base point fixed.

The property of being homotopic defines an equivalence relation on paths in a topological space. The equivalence class of a path f under this relation is called the homotopy class of f, often denoted [f].

Although path composition is not associative at the level of paths, it is associative at the level of homotopy. That is, [(fg)h] = [f(gh)]. Path composition defines a group structure on the set of homotopy classes of loops based at a point x in X. The resultant group is called the fundamental group of X based at x, usually denoted π1(X,x).

03-10-2013 05:06:04