A graph embedded in the 3-sphere is called irreducible if it is non-splittable and for any 2-sphere embedded in the 3-sphere that intersects the graph at one point the graph is contained in one of the 3-balls bounded by the 2-sphere. We show that irreducibility is preserved under certain deformations of embedded graphs. We show that certain embedded graphs are irreducible.
In this paper, we compute the graph skein algebra of the punctured disk with two holes. Then, we apply the graph skein techniques developed here to establish necessary conditions for a spatial graph to have a symmetry of order $p$, where $p$ is a prime. The obstruction criteria introduced here extend some results obtained earlier for symmetric spatial graphs.
We defined a grid homology theory for spatial graphs. We showed that the skein exact sequence of singular knots can be extended to our grid homology for spatial graphs.
We present formulae for computing the Yamada polynomial of spatial graphs obtained by replacing edges of plane graphs, such as cycle-graphs, theta-graphs, and bouquet-graphs, by spatial parts. As a corollary, it is shown that zeros of Yamada polynomials of some series of spatial graphs are dense in a certain region in the complex plane, described by a system of inequalities. Also, the relation between Yamada polynomial of graphs and the chain polynomial of edge-labelled graphs is obtained.
In this paper, we study Dehn colorings for spatial graphs, and give a family of spatial graph invariants that are called vertex-weight invariants. We give some examples of spatial graphs that can be distinguished by a vertex-weight invariant, whereas distinguished by neither their constituent links nor the number of Dehn colorings.
This is a short review article on invariants of spatial graphs, written for "A Concise Encyclopedia of Knot Theory" (ed. Adams et. al.). The emphasis is on combinatorial and polynomial invariants of spatial graphs, including the Alexander polynomial, the fundamental quandle of a graph, and the Yamada polynomial.
A region crossing change is a local transformation on spatial graph diagrams switching the over/under relations at all the crossings on the boundary of a region. In this paper, we show that a spatial graph of a planar graph is unknottable by region crossing changes if and only if the spatial graph is non-Eulerian or is Eulerian and proper.
We define braid presentation of edge-oriented spatial graphs as a natural generalization of braid presentation of oriented links. We show that every spatial graph has a braid presentation. For an oriented link it is known that the braid index is equal to the minimal number of Seifert circles. We show that an analogy does not hold for spatial graphs.
This is a survey article for the forthcoming `A Concise Encyclopedia of Knot Theory.' We focus on the topology of spatial graphs with few vertices and edges, paying particular attention to Brunnian $θ$-graphs.
In this paper, we study Dehn colorings of spatial graph diagrams, and classify the vertex conditions, equivalently the palettes. We give some example of spatial graphs which can be distinguished by the number of Dehn colorings with selecting an appropriate palette. Furthermore, we also discuss the generalized version of palettes, which is defined for knot-theoretic ternary-quasigroups and region colorings of spatial graph diagrams.
We extend the theory of combinatorial link Floer homology to a class of oriented spatial graphs called transverse spatial graphs. To do this, we define the notion of a grid diagram representing a transverse spatial graph, which we call a graph grid diagram. We prove that two graph grid diagrams representing the same transverse spatial graph are related by a sequence of graph grid moves, generalizing the work of Cromwell for links. For a graph grid diagram representing a transverse spatial graph $f:G \rightarrow S^3$, we define a relatively bigraded chain complex (which is a module over a multi…
This article presents a survey of some recent results in the theory of spatial graphs. In particular, we highlight results related to intrinsic knotting and linking and results about symmetries of spatial graphs. In both cases we consider spatial graphs in $S^3$ as well as in other $3$-manifolds.
We survey the construction and properties of the Yamada polynomial of spatial graphs and present the Yamada polynomial formulae for some classes of graphs. Then we construct an infinite family of spatial graphs for which roots of Yamada polynomials are dense in the complex plane.
We define the fundamental quandle of a spatial graph and several invariants derived from it. In the category of graph tangles, we define an invariant based on the walks in the graph and cocycles from nonabelian quandle cohomology.
In this paper we construct some invariants of spatial graphs by disk-summing the constituent knots and show the delta edge-homotopy invariance of them. As an application, we show that there exist infinitely many slice spatial embeddings of a planar graph up to delta edge-homotopy, and there exist infinitely many boundary spatial embeddings of a planar graph up to delta edge-homotopy.
Edge-homotopy and vertex-homotopy are equivalence relations on spatial graphs which are generalizations of Milnor's link-homotopy. We introduce some edge (resp. vertex)-homotopy invariants of spatial graphs by applying the Sato-Levine invariant for the 2-component constituent algebraically split links and show examples of non-splittable spatial graphs up to edge (resp. vertex)-homotopy, all of whose constituent links are link-homotopically trivial.
We introduce invariants of spatial graphs related to the Wu invariant and the Simon invariant, and apply them to prove that certain graphs are intrinsically chiral, and to obtain lower bounds for the minimal crossing number of embedded graphs.
Link homotopy has been an active area of research for knot theorists since its introduction by Milnor in the 1950s. We introduce a new equivalence relation on spatial graphs called component homotopy, which reduces to link homotopy in the classical case. Unlike previous attempts at generalizing link homotopy to spatial graphs, our new relation allows analogues of some standard link homotopy results and invariants. In particular we can define a type of Milnor group for a spatial graph under component homotopy, and this group determines whether or not the spatial graph is splittable. More surpri…
We introduce new formulas that are Vassiliev invariants of flat vertex isotopy classes of spatial 2-bouquet graphs, which are equivalent to 2-string links. Although any Gauss diagram formula of Vassiliev invariants of spatial 2-bouquet graphs in a 3-space has been unknown, this paper gives the first and simple example.
We use the topological invariant of spatial graphs introduced by S. Yamada to find necessary conditions for a spatial graph to be periodic with a prime period. The proof of the main result is based on computing the Yamada skein algebra of the solid torus then proving that this algebra injects into the Kauffman bracket skein algebra of the solid torus.
Edge-homotopy and vertex-homotopy are equivalence relations on spatial graphs which are generalizations of Milnor's link-homotopy. Fleming and the author introduced some edge (resp. vertex)-homotopy invariants of spatial graphs by applying the Sato-Levine invariant for the constituent 2-component algebraically split links. In this paper, we construct some new edge (resp. vertex)-homotopy invariants of spatial graphs without any restriction of linking numbers of the constituent 2-component links by applying the generalized Sato-Levine invariant.
We say that a graph is intrinsically non-trivial if every spatial embedding of the graph contains a non-trivial spatial subgraph. We prove that an intrinsically non-trivial graph is intrinsically linked, namely every spatial embedding of the graph contains a non-splittable 2-component link. We also show that there exists a graph such that every spatial embedding of the graph contains either a non-splittable 3-component link or an irreducible spatial handcuff graph whose constituent 2-component link is split.
Classical knot theory can be generalized to virtual knot theory and spatial graph theory. In 2007, Fleming and Mellor combined virtual knot theory and spatial graph theory to form, combinatorially, virtual spatial graph theory. In this paper, we introduce a topological definition of virtual spatial graphs that is similar to the topological definition of a virtual link. Our main goal is to generalize the classical Yamada polynomial that is defined for a spatial graph. We define a generalized Yamada polynomial for a virtual spatial graph and prove that it can be normalized to a rigid vertex isot…
We construct a series of finitely presented semigroups. The centers of these semigroups encode uniquely up to rigid ambient isotopy in 3-space all non-oriented spatial graphs. This encoding is obtained by using three-page embeddings of graphs into the product of the line with the cone on three points. By exploiting three-page embeddings we introduce the notion of the three-page complexity for spatial graphs. This complexity satisfies the properties of finiteness and additivity under natural operations.
A site-specific Gordian distance between two spatial embeddings of an abstract graph is the minimal number of crossing changes from one to another where each crossing change is performed between two previously specified abstract edges of the graph. It is infinite in some cases. We determine the site-specific Gordian distance between two spatial embeddings of an abstract graph in certain cases. It has an application to puzzle ring problem. The site-specific Gordian distances between Milnor links and trivial links are determined. We use covering space theory for the proofs.
We consider the group of isotopy classes of automorphisms of the 3-sphere that preserve a spatial graph or a handlebody-knot embedded in it. We prove that the group is finitely presented for an arbitrary spatial graph or a reducible handlebody-knot of genus two. We also prove that the groups for "most" irreducible genus two handlebody-knots are finite.
We show that all nontrivial embeddings of planar graphs on the torus contain a nontrivial knot or a nonsplit link. This is equivalent to showing that no minimally knotted planar spatial graphs on the torus exist that contain neither a nontrivial knot nor a nonsplit link all of whose components are unknots.
We give a necessary and sufficient condition for the mapping class group of the pair of the 3-sphere and a graph embedded in it to be isomorphic to the topological symmetry group of the embedded graph.
It is known that the unknotting number $u(L)$ of a link $L$ is less than or equal to half the crossing number $c(L)$ of $L$. We show that there are a planar graph $G$ and its spatial embedding $f$ such that the unknotting number $u(f)$ of $f$ is greater than half the crossing number $c(f)$ of $f$. We study relations between unknotting number and crossing number of spatial embedding of a planar graph in general.
An ordered and oriented 2-component link L in the 3-sphere is said to be achiral if it is ambient isotopic to its mirror image ignoring the orientation and ordering of the components. Kirk-Livingston showed that if L is achiral then the linking number of L is not congruent to 2 modulo 4. In this paper we study orientation-preserving or reversing symmetries of 2-component links, spatial complete graphs on 5 vertices and spatial complete bipartite graphs on 3+3 vertices in detail, and determine the necessary conditions on linking numbers and Simon invariants for such links and spatial graphs to …
A neighborhood homotopy is an equivalence relation on spatial graphs which is generated by crossing changes on the same component and neighborhood equivalence. We give a complete classification of all 2-component spatial graphs up to neighborhood homotopy by the elementary divisor of a linking matrix with respect to the first homology group of each of the connected components. This also leads a kind of homotopy classification of 2-component handlebody-links.
The fundamental quandle is a powerful invariant of knots, links and spatial graphs, but it is often difficult to determine whether two quandles are isomorphic. One approach is to look at quotients of the quandle, such as the $n$-quandle defined by Joyce \cite{JO}; in particular, Hoste and Shanahan \cite{HS2} classified the knots and links with finite $n$-quandles. Mellor and Smith \cite{MS} introduced the $N$-quandle of a link as a generalization of Joyce's $n$-quandle, and proposed a classification of the links with finite $N$-quandles. We generalize the $N$-quandle to spatial graphs, and inv…
A {\em balanced} spatial graph has an integer weight on each edge, so that the directed sum of the weights at each vertex is zero. We describe the Alexander module and polynomial for balanced spatial graphs (originally due to Kinoshita \cite{ki}), and examine their behavior under some common operations on the graph. We use the Alexander module to define the determinant and $p$-colorings of a balanced spatial graph, and provide examples. We show that the determinant of a spatial graph determines for which $p$ the graph is $p$-colorable, and that a $p$-coloring of a graph corresponds to a repres…
Bae and Park found an upper bound on the arc index of prime links in terms of the minimal crossing number. In this paper, we extend the definition of the arc presentation to spatial graphs and find an upper bound on the arc index $α(G)$ of any spatial graph $G$ as $$α(G) \leq c(G)+e+b,$$ where $c(G)$ is the minimal crossing number of $G$, $e$ is the number of edges, and $b$ is the number of bouquet cut-components. This upper bound is lowest possible.
The notion of a pseudoknot is defined as an equivalence class of knot diagrams that may be missing some crossing information. We provide here a topological invariant schema for pseudoknots and their relatives, 4-valent rigid vertex spatial graphs and singular knots, that is obtained by replacing unknown crossings or vertices by rational tangles.
First, we extend Otal's result for the trivial knot to trivial spatial graphs, namely, we show that for any bridge tangle decomposing sphere $S^2$ for a trivial spatial graph $Γ$, there exists a 2-sphere $F$ such that $F$ contains $Γ$ and $F$ intersects $S^2$ in a single loop. Next, we introduce two invariants for spatial graphs. As a generalization of the bridge number for knots, we define the {\em bridge string number} $bs(Γ)$ of a spatial graph $Γ$ as the minimal number of $|Γ\cap S^2|$ for all bridge tangle decomposing sphere $S^2$. As a spatial version of the representativity for a graph …
We extend the concepts of trivializing and knotting numbers for knots to spatial graphs and 2-bouquet graphs, in particular. Furthermore, we calculate the trivializing and knotting numbers for projections and pseudodiagrams of 2-bouquet spatial graphs based on the number of precrossings and the placement of the precrossings in the pseudodiagram of the spatial graph.
There are many studies about twisted Alexander invariants for knots and links, but calculations of twisted Alexander invariants for spatial graphs, handlebody-knots, and surface-links have not been demonstrated well. In this paper, we give some remarks to calculate the twisted Alexander ideals for spatial graphs, handlebody-knots and surface-links, and observe their behaviors. For spatial graphs, we calculate the invariants of Suzuki's theta-curves and show that the invariants are nontrivial for Suzuki's theta-curves whose Alexander ideals are trivial. For handlebody-knots, we give a remark on…
We study relations between unknotting number and crossing number of a spatial embedding of a handcuff-graph and a theta curve. It is well known that for any non-trivial knot $K$ twice the unknotting number of $K$ is less than or equal to the crossing number of $K$ minus one. We show that this is extended to handlebody-knots. We also characterize the handlebody-knots which satisfy the equality.
In 2003, Ozsváth and Szabó defined the concordance invariant $τ$ for knots in oriented 3-manifolds as part of the Heegaard Floer homology package. In 2011, Sarkar gave a combinatorial definition of $τ$ for knots in $S^3$ and a combinatorial proof that $τ$ gives a lower bound for the slice genus of a knot. Recently, Harvey and O'Donnol defined a relatively bigraded combinatorial Heegaard Floer homology theory for transverse spatial graphs in $S^3$ which extends knot Floer homology. We define a $\mathbb{Z}$-filtered chain complex for balanced spatial graphs whose associated graded chain complex …
In this paper we show that every finite spatial graph is a connected sum of a planar graph, which is a forest, i.e. disjoint union of finite number of trees and a tangle. As a consequence we get that any finite spatial graph is a connected sum of a planar graph and a braid. Using these decompositions it is not difficult to find a set of generators and defining relations for the fundamental group of compliment of a spatial graph in 3-space $\mathbb{R}^3$.
Menasco proved the surprising result that if $G$ is a reduced, alternating, connected projection of a link $L$ and $G$ is prime then $L$ is prime. This result has been generalized to other classes of links, tangles, and spatial graphs. We draw attention to some issues with previous splitting results about tangles and spatial graphs, and obtain new more general results for tangles and spatial graphs.
Two natural generalizations of knot theory are the study of spatially embedded graphs, and Kauffman's theory of virtual knots. In this paper we combine these approaches to begin the study of virtual spatial graphs.
A construction of a spatial graph from a strongly invertible knot was developed by the second author, and a necessary and sufficient condition for the given spatial graph to be hyperbolic was provided as well. The condition is improved in this paper. This enable us to show that certain classes of knots can yield hyperbolic spatial graphs via the construction.
We introduce \textit{Niebrzydowski algebras}, algebraic structures with a ternary operation and a partially defined multiplication, with axioms motivated by the Reidemeister moves for $Y$-oriented trivalent spatial graphs and handlebody-links. As part of this definition, we identify generating sets of $Y$-oriented Reidemeister moves. We give some examples to demonstrate that the counting invariant can distinguish some $Y$-oriented trivalent spatial graphs and handlebody-links.
We introduce a notion of intrinsic linking and knotting for virtual spatial graphs. Our theory gives two filtrations of the set of all graphs, allowing us to measure, in a sense, how intrinsically linked or knotted a graph is; we show that these filtrations are descending and non-terminating. We also provide several examples of intrinsically virtually linked and knotted graphs. As a byproduct, we introduce the {\it virtual unknotting number} of a knot, and show that any knot with non-trivial Jones polynomial has virtual unknotting number at least 2.
Two natural generalizations of knot theory are the study of spatial graphs and virtual knots. Our goal is to unify these two approaches into the study of virtual spatial graphs. This paper is a survey, and does not contain any new results. We state the definitions, provide some examples, and survey the known results. We hope that this paper will help lead to rapid development of the area.
Tutte showed that a graph $G$ is planar if and only if the conflict graph associated to every cycle of $G$ is bipartite. We define a (not necessarily unique) signed conflict graph associated to a maximally planar subgraph of a nonplanar graph such that if $G$ has a flat embedding, every possible conflict graph associated to every maximally planar subgraph of $G$ is balanced. In doing this, we show that for every graph $G$ with flat embedding, and a planar subgraph $P$ of $G$, $P$ lies on a sphere that intersects $G$ only in $P$. We conjecture that $G$ is intrinsically linked if and only if eve…