Minimal length maximal green sequences

Abstract: Maximal green sequences are important objects in representation theory, cluster algebras, and string theory. It is an open problem to determine what lengths are achieved by the maximal green sequences of a quiver. We combine the combinatorics of surface triangulations and the basics of scattering diagrams to address this problem. Our main result is a formula for the length of minimal length maximal green sequences of quivers defined by triangulations of an annulus or a punctured disk.