We show that if M is a surface bundle over S^1 with fiber of genus 2, then for any integer n, M has a finite cover tilde(M) with b_1(tilde(M)) > n. A corollary is that M can be geometrized using only the `non-fiber' case of Thurston's Geometrization Theorem for Haken manifolds.
In this note, we compute the virtual first Betti numbers of 4-manifolds fibering over $S^1$ with prime fiber. As an application, we show that if such a manifold is symplectic with nonpositive Kodaira dimension, then the fiber itself is a sphere or torus bundle over $S^1$. In a different direction, we prove that if the 3-dimensional fiber of such a 4-manifold is virtually fibered then the 4-manifold is virtually symplectic unless its virtual first Betti number is 1.
The virtual Betti number conjecture states that any hyperbolic three-manifold has a finite cover with positive first Betti number. We show that this would follow if it were known that the derived series of the fundamental group $G$ of a hyperbolic three-manifold satisfies a certain stability property. The stability property is the statement that if all the quotients $G^i/G^{i+1}$ of the derived series $G^i$ of $G$ are finite, then the derived series stabilises. The proof involves basic facts regarding finite group actions on homology spheres.
We provide linear lower bounds for the signature of positive braids in terms of the three genus of their braid closure. This yields linear bounds for the topological slice genus of knots that arise as closures of positive braids.
We prove that if a closed oriented 4-manifold X fibers over a 2- or 3-dimensional manifold, in most cases all of its virtual Betti numbers are infinite. In turn, we show that a closed oriented 4-manifold X which is not a tower of torus bundles and fibering over a 2- or 3-dimensional manifold does not admit a torsion symplectic canonical class, nor is of Kodaira dimension zero.
Given a knot in the 3-sphere, the non-orientable 4-genus or 4-dimensional crosscap number of a knot is the minimal first Betti number of non-orientable surfaces, smoothly and properly embedded in the 4-ball, with boundary the knot. In this paper, we calculate the non-orientable 4-genus of knots with crossing number 10.
Lower bounds of betti numbers for homology groups of racks and quandles will be given using the quotient homomorphism to the orbit quandles. Exact sequences relating various types of homology groups are analyzed. Geometric methods of proving non-triviality of cohomology groups are also given, using virtual knots. The results can be applied to knot theory as the first step towards evaluationg the state-sum invariants defined from quandle cohomology.
We compute lower bounds on the virtual crossing number and minimal surface genus of virtual knot diagrams from the arrow polynomial. In particular, we focus on several interesting examples.
In this paper, we compute the slice genus for many low-crossing virtual knots. For instance, we show that 1295 out of 92800 virtual knots with 6 or fewer crossings are slice, and that all but 248 of the rest are not slice. Key to these results are computations of Turaev's graded genus, which we show extends to give an invariant of virtual knot concordance. The graded genus is remarkably effective as a slice obstruction, and we develop an algorithm that applies virtual unknotting operations to determine the slice genus of many virtual knots with 6 or fewer crossings.
Using the virtual fibering theorem of Agol we show that a sutured 3-manifold $(M, R_+,R_-,γ)$ is taut if and only if the $\ell^2$-Betti numbers of the pair $(M,R_-)$ are zero. As an application we can characterize Thurston norm minimizing surfaces in a 3-manifold $N$ with empty or toroidal boundary by the vanishing of certain $\ell^2$-Betti numbers.
It is shown that for given positive integers g and b, there is a number C(g,b), such that any orientable compact irreducible 3-manifold of Heegaard genus g has at most C(g,b) disjoint, nonparallel incompressible surfaces with first Betti number b_1 < b.
The non-orientable 4-genus of a knot in the 3-sphere is defined as the smallest first Betti number of any non-orientable surface smoothly and properly embedded in the 4-ball, with boundary the given knot. We compute the non-orientable 4-genus for all knots with crossing number 8 or 9. As applications we prove a conjecture of Murakami's and Yasuhara's, and give a new lower bound for the slicing number of knot.
The nonorientable four-ball genus of a knot K is the smallest first Betti number of any smoothly embedded, nonorientable surface F in B^4 bounding K. In contrast to the orientable four-ball genus, which is bounded below by the Murasugi signature, the Ozsvath-Szabo tau-invariant, the Rasmussen s-invariant, the best lower bound in the literature on the nonorientable four-ball genus for any K is 3. We find a lower bound in terms of the signature of K and the Heegaard-Floer d-invariant of the integer homology sphere given by -1 surgery on K. In particular, we prove that the nonorientable four-ball…
Given a reducible $3$-manifold $M$ with an aspherical summand in its prime decomposition and a homeomorphism $f\colon M\to M$, we construct a map of degree one from a finite cover of $M\rtimes_f S^1$ to a mapping torus of a certain aspherical $3$-manifold. We deduce that $M\rtimes_f S^1$ has virtually infinite first Betti number, except when all aspherical summands of $M$ are virtual $T^2$-bundles. This verifies all cases of a conjecture of T.-J. Li and Y. Ni, that any mapping torus of a reducible $3$-manifold $M$ not covered by $S^2\times S^1$ has virtually infinite first Betti number, except…
A virtual knot is an equivalence class of embeddings of $ S^1 $ into thickened (closed oriented) surfaces, up to self-diffeomorphism of the surface and certain handle stabilisations. The slice genus of a virtual knot is defined diagrammatically, in direct analogy to that of a classical knot. However, it may be defined, equivalently, as follows: a representative of a virtual knot is an embedding of $ S^1 $ into a thickened surface $ Σ_g \times I $; what is the minimal genus of oriented surfaces $ S \hookrightarrow M \times I $ with the embedded $ S^1 $ as boundary, where $ M $ is an oriented $ …
A virtual link may be defined as an equivalence class of diagrams, or alternatively as a stable equivalence class of links in thickened surfaces. We prove that a minimal crossing virtual link diagram has minimal genus across representatives of the stable equivalence class. This is achieved by constructing a new parity theory for virtual links. As corollaries, we prove that the crossing, bridge, and ascending numbers of a classical link do not decrease when it is regarded as a virtual link. This extends corresponding results in the case of virtual knots due to Manturov and Chernov.
A pseudodiagram is a diagram of a knot with some crossing information missing. We review and expand the theory of pseudodiagrams introduced by R. Hanaki. We then extend this theory to the realm of virtual knots, a generalization of knots. In particular, we investigate how much crossing information must be known to conclude that a diagram is a diagram of the unknot (the trivializing number). We also consider how much information is necessary to identify a non-trivial knot, a classical knot, or a non-classical knot. We then apply pseudodiagram theory to develop new upper bounds on unknotting num…
In formulating a non-orientable analogue of the Milnor Conjecture on the $4$-genus of torus knots, Batson developed an elegant construction that produces a smooth non-orientable spanning surface in $B^4$ for a given torus knot in $S^3$. While Lobb showed that Batson's surfaces do not always minimize the non-orientable $4$-genus, we prove that they always do minimize among surfaces that share their normal Euler number. We also completely determine the possible pairs of normal Euler number and first Betti number for non-orientable surfaces whose boundary lies in a class of torus knots for which …
Edmonds famously proved that every periodic knot of genus g possesses an equivariant Seifert surface of genus g. We show that this is not true if one instead considers nonorientable spanning surfaces of a periodic knot. We demonstrate by example that the difference between the first Betti number of an equivariant and a nonequivariant nonorientable spanning surface of a periodic knot, can be arbitrarily large.
For an oriented virtual link, L.H. Kauffman defined the f-polynomial (Jones polynomial). The supporting genus of a virtual link diagram is the minimal genus of a surface in which the diagram can be embedded. In this paper we show that the span of the f-polynomial of an alternating virtual link L is determined by the number of crossings of any alternating diagram of L and the supporting genus of the diagram. It is a generalization of Kauffman-Murasugi-Thistlethwaite's theorem. We also prove a similar result for a virtual link diagram that is obtained from an alternating virtual link diagram by …
In this paper, we give a lower bound for the maximum and minimum genus of a multibranched surface by the first Betti number and the minimum and maximum genus of the boundary of the neighborhood of it, respectively. As its application, we show that the maximum and minimum genus of $G\times S^1$ is equal to twice of the maximum and minimum genus of $G$ for a graph $G$, respectively. This provides an interplay between graph theory and 3-manifold theory.
In this paper, we give infinitely many non-Haken hyperbolic genus three 3-manifolds each of which has a finite cover whose induced Heegaard surface from some genus three Heegaard surface of the base manifold is reducible but can be compressed into an incompressible surface. This result supplements [CG] and extends [MMZ].
In this paper, we study the Khovanov homology of an alternating virtual link $L$ and show that it is supported on $g+2$ diagonal lines, where $g$ equals the virtual genus of $L$. Specifically, we show that $Kh^{i,j}(L)$ is supported on the lines $j=2i-σ_ξ+2k-1$ for $0\leq k\leq g+1$ where $σ_{ξ^*}(L)+2g= σ_ξ(L)$ are the signatures of $L$ for a checkerboard coloring $ξ$ and its dual $ξ^*$. Of course, for classical links, the two signatures are equal and this recovers Lee's $H$-thinness result for $Kh^{*,*}(L)$. Our result applies more generally to give an upper bound for the homological width o…
Study of certain isotopy classes of a finite collection of immersed circles without triple or higher intersections on closed oriented surfaces can be thought of as a planar analogue of virtual knot theory where the genus zero case corresponds to classical knot theory. Alexander and Markov theorems for the genus zero case are known where the role of groups is played by twin groups, a class of right angled Coxeter groups with only far commutativity relations. The purpose of this paper is to prove Alexander and Markov theorems for higher genus case where the role of groups is played by a new clas…
We show that if a closed hyperbolic 3-manifold has infinitely many finite covers of bounded Heegaard genus, then it is virtually fibered. This generalizes a theorem of Lackenby, removing restrictions needed about the regularity of the covers. Furthermore, we can replace the assumption that the covers have bounded Heegaard genus with the weaker hypotheses that the Heegaard splittings for the covers have Heegaard gradient zero, and also bounded width, in the sense of Scharlemann-Thompson thin position for Heegaard splittings.
We introduce the notion of ascent sliceness of virtual knots. A representative of a virtual knot is an embedding $ S^1 \hookrightarrow Σ_{g} \times I $, for $ Σ_g $ a closed connected oriented surface of genus $ g $; the virtual knot represented is slice if there exists a pair consisting of a disc $ D $ and an oriented $ 3 $-manifold $ M $, such that $ D \hookrightarrow M \times I $, $ \partial M = Σ_{g} $, and $ \partial D = S^1 $ (the image of the embedding). This definition of sliceness exemplifies that a cobordism of virtual links is a pair consisting of a surface and a $ 3 $-manifold; in …
A virtual knot that has a homologically trivial representative $\mathscr{K}$ in a thickened surface $Σ\times [0,1]$ is said to be an almost classical (AC) knot. $\mathscr{K}$ then bounds a Seifert surface $F\subset Σ\times [0,1]$. Seifert surfaces of AC knots are useful for computing concordance invariants and slice obstructions. However, Seifert surfaces in $Σ\times [0,1]$ are difficult to construct. Here we introduce virtual Seifert surfaces of AC knots. These are planar figures representing $F \subset Σ\times [0,1]$. An algorithm for constructing a virtual Seifert surface from a Gauss diagr…
A virtual $n$-string $α$ is a collection of $n$ oriented smooth generic loops on a surface $M$. A stabilization of $α$ is a surgery that results in attaching a handle to $M$ along disks avoiding $α$, and the inverse operation is a destabilization of $α$. We consider virtual $n$-strings up to virtual homotopy, i.e., sequences of stabilizations, destabilizations, and homotopies of $α$. Recently, Cahn proved that any virtual $1$-string can be virtually homotoped to a genus-minimal and crossing-minimal representative by monotonically decreasing both genus and the number of self-intersections. We g…
We introduce Tristram-Levine signatures of virtual knots and use them to investigate virtual knot concordance. The signatures are defined first for almost classical knots, which are virtual knots admitting homologically trivial representations. The signatures and $ω$-signatures are shown to give bounds on the topological slice genus of almost classical knots, and they are applied to address a recent question of Dye, Kaestner, and Kauffman on the virtual slice genus of classical knots. A conjecture on the topological slice genus is formulated and confirmed for all classical knots with up to 11 …
We introduce a new polynomial invariant of virtual knots and links and use this invariant to compute a lower bound on the virtual crossing number and the minimal surface genus.
We prove that every finitely presented group with positive first $\ell^2$-Betti number that virtually surjects onto $\mathbb Z$ is acylindrically hyperbolic. In particular, this implies acylindrical hyperbolicity of finitely presented residually finite groups with positive first $\ell^2$-Betti number as well as groups of deficiency at least $2$.
In our works with Stoimenow, Vdovina and with Byberi, we introduced the virtual canonical genus $g_{vc}(K)$ and the virtual bridge number $vb(K)$ invariants of virtual knots. One can see from the definitions that for an classical knot $K$ the values of these invariants are less or equal than the classical canonical genus $g_c(K)$ and the bridge number $b(K)$ respectively. We use Manturov's projection from the category of virtual knot diagrams to the category of classical knot diagrams, to show that for every classical knot type $K$ we have $g_{vc}(K)=g_c(K)$ and $vb(K)=b(K)$.
A realization of a virtual link diagram is obtained by choosing over/under markings for each virtual crossing. Any realization can also be obtained from some representation of the virtual link. (A representation of a virtual link is a link diagram on an oriented 2-dimensional surface.) We prove that if a minimal genus representation meets certain criteria then there is a minimal genus representation resulting in a knotted realization.
Simple crystallizations are edge-coloured graphs representing PL 4-manifolds with the property that the 1-skeleton of the associated triangulation equals the 1-skeleton of a 4-simplex. In the present paper, we prove that any (simply-connected) PL $4$-manifold $M$ admitting a simple crystallization admits a special handlebody decomposition, too; equivalently, $M$ may be represented by a framed link yielding $\mathbb S^3$, with exactly $β_2(M)$ components ($β_2(M)$ being the second Betti number of $M$). As a consequence, the regular genus of $M$ is proved to be the double of $β_2(M)$. Moreover, …
We compute the Heegaard Floer homology of any rational homology 3-sphere with an open book decomposition of the form (T,ϕ), where T is a genus one surface with one boundary component. In addition, we compute the Heegaard Floer homology of any T^2-bundle over S^1 with first Betti number equal to one, and we compare our results with those of Lebow on the embedded contact homology of such torus bundles. We use these computations to place restrictions on Stein-filllings of the contact structures compatible with such open books, to narrow down somewhat the class of 3-braid knots with finite concord…
We characterize the first Alexander Z[Z]-modules of ribbon surface-links in the 4-sphere fixing the number of components and the total genus, and then the first Alexander Z[Z]-modules of surface-links in the 4-sphere fixing the number of components. Using the result of ribbon torus-links, we also characterize the first Alexander Z[Z]-modules of virtual links fixing the number of components. For a general surface-link, an estimate of the total genus is given in terms of the first Alexander Z[Z]-module. We show a graded structure on the first Alexander Z[Z]-modules of all surface-links and then …
We explicitly produce symplectic genus-3 Lefschetz pencils (with base points), whose total spaces are homeomorphic but not diffeomorphic to rational surfaces CP^2 # p (-CP^2) for p= 7, 8, 9. We then give a new construction of an infinite family of symplectic Calabi-Yau surfaces with first Betti number b_1=2,3, along with a surface with b_1=4 homeomorphic to the 4-torus. These are presented as the total spaces of symplectic genus-3 Lefschetz pencils we construct via new positive factorizations in the mapping class group of a genus-3 surface. Our techniques in addition allow us to answer in the …
We prove a well known conjecture of Nikolai Ivanov which states that if $X$ is a surface of genus $\geq 3$ (with any number of punctures and boundary components), $\rm{Mod}(X)$ is the mapping class group of $X$, and $K < \rm{Mod}(X)$ is a finite-index subgroup, then $K$ does not virtually surject to $\mathbb{Z}$. As a corollary of this we get that $H_1(Z; \mathbb{Q}) = 0$ whenever $Z$ is a finite cover of $\mathcal{M}_{g,n}$, the moduli space of complex algebraic curves of genus $g\geq 3$ with $n$ marked points.
A group invariant for links in thickened closed orientable surfaces is studied. Associated polynomial invariants are defined. The group detects nontriviality of a virtual link and determines its virtual genus.
Let $X$ be an irreducible smooth geometrically integral projective surface over a field. In this paper we give an effective bound in terms of the Neron--Severi rank $ρ(X)$ of $X$ for the number of irreducible curves $C$ on $X$ with negative self-intersection and geometric genus less than $b_1(X)/4$, where $b_1(X)$ is the first étale Betti number of $X$. The proof involves a hyperbolic analog of the theory of spherical codes. More specifically, we relate these curves to the hyperbolic kissing number, and then prove upper and lower bounds for the hyperbolic kissing number in terms of the classic…
Dye and Kauffman defined surface bracket polynomials for virtual links by use of surface states, and found a relationship between the surface states and the minimal genus of a surface in which a virtual link diagram is realized. They and Miyazawa independently defined a multivariable polynomial invariant of virtual links. This invariant is deeply related to the surface states. In this paper, we introduce the notion of surface pole bracket polynomials for link diagrams in closed surfaces, as a generalization of surface bracket polynomials by Dye and Kauffman. The polynomials induce the invarian…
Virtual links are generalizations of classical links that can be represented by links embedded in a ``thickened'' surface $Σ\times I$, product of a Riemann surface of genus $h$ with an interval. In this paper, we show that virtual alternating links and tangles are naturally associated with the $1/N^2$ expansion of an integral over $N\times N$ complex matrices. We suggest that it is sufficient to count the equivalence classes of these diagrams modulo ordinary (planar) flypes. To test this hypothesis, we use an algorithm coding the corresponding Feynman diagrams by means of permutations that gen…
We investigate the cohomology of the level 4 subgroup of the braid group, namely, the kernel of the mod 4 reduction of the Burau representation at $t=-1$. This group is also equal to the kernel of the mod 2 abelianization of the pure braid group. We give an exact formula for the first Betti number; it is a quartic polynomial in the number of strands. We also show that, like the pure braid group, the first homology satisfies uniform representation stability in the sense of Church and Farb. Unlike the pure braid group, the group of symmetries - the quotient of the braid group by the level 4 subg…
A virtual link can be understood as a link in a trivial I-bundle over an orientable compact surface with genus. A twisted virtual link is a link in a trivial I-bundle over a not-necessarily orientable compact surface. A twisted virtual birack is an algebraic structure with axioms derived from the twisted virtual Reidemeister moves. We extend a method previously used with racks and biracks to the twisted case to define computable invariants of twisted virtual links using finite twisted virtual biracks with birack rank $N\ge 1$. As an application, we classify twist structures on the virtual Hopf…
Let Mod_g be the mapping class group of a genus g >= 2 surface. The group Mod_g has virtual cohomological dimension 4g-5. In this note we use a theorem of Broaddus and the combinatorics of chord diagrams to prove that H^{4g-5}(Mod_g; Q) = 0.
Let $F',F$ be any two closed orientable surfaces of genus $g'>g\ge 1$, and $f:F\to F$ be any pseudo-Anosov map. Then we can "extend" $f$ to be a pseudo-Anosov map $f':F'\to F'$ so that there is a fiber preserving degree one map $M(F',f')\to M(F,f)$ between the hyperbolic surface bundles. Moreover the extension $f'$ can be chosen so that the surface bundles $M(F',f')$ and $M(F,f)$ have the same first Betti numbers.
Kuperberg [Algebr. Geom. Topol. 3 (2003) 587-591] has shown that a virtual knot corresponds (up to generalized Reidemeister moves) to a unique embedding in a thichened surface of minimal genus. If a virtual knot diagram is equivalent to a classical knot diagram then this minimal surface is a sphere. Using this result and a generalised bracket polynomial, we develop methods that may determine whether a virtual knot diagram is non-classical (and hence non-trivial). As examples we show that, except for special cases, link diagrams with a single virtualization and link diagrams with a single virtu…
Two categorifications are given for the arrow polynomial, an extension of the Kauffman bracket polynomial for virtual knots. The arrow polynomial extends the bracket polynomial to infinitely many variables, each variable corresponding to an integer {\it arrow number} calculated from each loop in an oriented state summation for the bracket. The categorifications are based on new gradings associated with these arrow numbers, and give homology theories associated with oriented virtual knots and links via extra structure on the Khovanov chain complex. Applications are given to the estimation of vi…