arXiv research

Skein algebra action is faithful if quantum parameter isn't a root of 1.

In this article we study the space of left- and bi-invariant orderings on a torsion-free nilpotent group $G$. We will show that generally the set of such orderings is equipped with a faithful action of the automorphism group of $G$. We prove a result which allows us to establish the same conclusion when $G$ is assumed …

Finite index subgroups of certain groups cannot act faithfully on the circle.

We show that the action of the mapping class group on bordered Floer homology in the second to extremal spin^c-structure is faithful. This paper is designed partly as an introduction to the subject, and much of it should be readable without a background in Floer homology.

We consider the following problem: for which classes of finite groups, and in particular finite simple groups, does the minimal dimension of a faithful, smooth action on a homology sphere coincide with the minimal dimension of a faithful, linear action on a sphere? We prove that the two minimal dimensions coincide for …

A group action on a moduli space is shown to be faithful.

We consider representations of the Cuntz algebras ${\mathcal O}_N$ as constructed by Bratteli-Jorgensen and use these to define a faithful action of the analytic loop group $L_{\text{an}}U(n)$ on ${\mathcal O}_N$ for $N \geq n$. This extends to a faithful action on the infinite Cuntz algebra ${\mathcal O}_{\infty}$, an…

It is a consequence of the classical Jordan bound for finite subgroups of linear groups that in each dimension n there are only finitely many finite simple groups which admit a faithful, linear action on the n-sphere. In the present paper we prove an analogue for smooth actions on arbitrary homology n-spheres: in each …

The Burau representation is a natural action of the braid group B_n on the free Z[t,t^{-1}]-module of rank n-1. It is a longstanding open problem to determine for which values of n this representation is faithful. It is known to be faithful for n=3. Moody has shown that it is not faithful for n>8 and Long and Paton imp…

New categorical actions link topological and algebraic structures.

This paper classifies Hamiltonian actions by symplectic groupoids using Delzant subspaces.

The standard actions of finite groups on spheres S^d are linear actions, i.e. by finite subgroups of the orthogonal group O(d+1). We prove that, in each dimension d>5, there is a finite group G which admits a faithful, topological action on a sphere S^d but is not isomorphic to a subgroup of O(d+1). The situation remai…

If M is an atoroidal 3-manifold with a taut foliation, Thurston showed that pi_1(M) acts on a circle. Here, we show that some other classes of essential laminations also give rise to actions on circles. In particular, we show this for tight essential laminations with solid torus guts. We also show that pseudo-Anosov fl…

The braid groups B_n can be defined as the mapping class group of the n-punctured disc. The Lawrence-Krammer representation of the braid group B_n is the induced action on a certain twisted second homology of the space of unordered pairs of points in the n-punctured disc. Recently, Daan Krammer showed that this is a fa…

We construct a finite dimensional quiver algebra from the non-simply laced type $B$ Dynkin diagram, which we call the type $B$ zigzag algebra. This leads to a faithful categorical action of the type $B$ braid group $\mathcal{A}(B)$, acting on the homotopy category of its projective modules. This categorical action is a…

The group SL(n,Z) admits a smooth faithful action on the (n-1)-sphere S^(n-1), induced from its linear action on euclidean space R^n. We show that, if m < n-1 and n > 2, any smooth action of SL(n,Z) on a mod 2 homology m-sphere, and in particular on the m-sphere S^m, is trivial.

Groups acting on bifoliated planes are left-orderable.

The symplectic group Sp(2g,Z) is a subgroup of the linear group SL(2g,Z) and admits a faithful action on the sphere S^(2g-1), induced from its linear action on Euclidean space R^(2g). Generalizing corresponding results for linear groups, we show that, if m < 2g-1 and g > 2, any continuous action of Sp(2g,Z) on a homolo…

We prove that an irreducible lattice in a semisimple algebraic group is virtually isomorphic to an arithmetic lattice if and only if it admits a faithful self-similar action on a rooted tree of finite valency.

\begin{abstract} The reduced Burau representation is a natural action of the braid group $B_n$ on the first homology group $H_1({\tilde{D}}_n;\mathbb{Z})$ of a suitable infinite cyclic covering space ${\tilde{D}}_n$ of the $n$--punctured disc $D_n$. It is known that the Burau representation is faithful for $n\le 3$ and…

We define a family of the braid group representations via the action of the $R$-matrix (of the quasitriangular extension) of the restricted quantum $\mathfrak{sl}(2)$ on a tensor power of a simple projective module. This family is an extension of the Lawrence representation specialized at roots of unity. Although the c…

We study two--generated subgroups $\langle f,g\rangle<\mathrm{Homeo}^+(I)$ such that $\langle f^2,g^2\rangle$ is isomorphic to Thompson's group $F$, and such that the supports of $f$ and $g$ form a chain of two intervals. We show that this class contains uncountably many isomorphism types. These include examples with n…

Using a quiver algebra of a cyclic quiver, we construct a faithful categorical action of the extended braid group of affine type A on its bounded homotopy category of finitely generated projective modules. The algebra is trigraded and we identify the trigraded dimensions of the space of morphisms of this category with …

Let S be a connected orientable surface with finitely many punctures, finitely many boundary components, and genus at least 6. Then any C^1 action of the mapping class group of S on the circle is trivial. The techniques used in the proof of this result permit us to show that products of Kazhdan groups and certain latti…

We prove that any rigid representation of $π_1Σ_g$ in $\mathrm{Homeo}_+(S^1)$ with Euler number at least $g$ is necessarily semi-conjugate to a discrete, faithful representation into $\mathrm{PSL}(2,\mathbb{R})$. Combined with earlier work of Matsumoto, this precisely characterizes Fuchsian actions by a topological rig…

We construct the Fukaya category of a surface with genus greater than one and compute its Grothendieck group. We consider here a topological variant, in which we disregard the area form and use instead an admissibility condition borrowed from Heegaard-Floer theory which ensures invariance under isotopy. We also study a…

This paper aims to generalize Artin's ideas to establish an one-to-one correspondence between the orbit braid group $B^{orb}_n(\mathbb{C},\mathbb{Z}_p)$ and a quotient of a group formed by some particular homeomorphisms of a punctured plane. First, we find a faithful representation of $B^{orb}_n(\mathbb{C},\mathbb{Z}_p…

We study the problem of existence of Kähler--Einstein metrics on smooth Fano threefolds of Picard rank one and anticanonical degree $22$ that admit a faithful action of the multiplicative group $\mathbb{C}^\ast$. We prove that, except possibly two explicitly described cases, all such smooth Fano threefolds are Kähler--…

In this partly expository monograph we develop a general framework for producing uncountable families of exotic actions of certain classically studied groups acting on the circle. We show that if $L$ is a nontrivial limit group then the nonlinear representation variety $\mathrm{Hom}(L,\mathrm{Homeo}_+(S^1))$ contains u…

We prove that the isomorphism type of a large class of groups (containing finite groups, countable Artinian groups and mapping class groups of certain surfaces, among others) is determined by the set of differential graded $\mathbb Q$-algebras on which these groups act faithfully.

Defines smooth actions of a group on manifolds and vector spaces.

New findings on mapping class group actions on the circle, improving critical regularity.

We give completely combinatorial proofs of the main results of [3] using polygons. Namely, we prove that the mapping class group of a surface with boundary acts faithfully on a finitely-generated linear category. Along the way we prove some foundational results regarding the relevant objects from bordered Heegaard Floe…

This classification is found by analyzing the action of a normal subgroup of $B_3$ as hyperbolic isometries. This paper gives an example of an unfaithful specialization of the Burau representation on $B_4$ that is faithful when restricted to $B_3$, as well as examples of unfaithful specializations of $B_3$.

In 2001, Khovanov and Seidel constructed a faithful action of the (m+1)-strand braid group on the derived category of left modules over a quiver algebra, A_m. We interpret the Hochschild homology of the Khovanov-Seidel braid invariant as a direct summand of the sutured Khovanov homology of the annular braid closure.

Let M be a twisted interval bundle over a nonorientable hyperbolizable surface. Let X(M) be the PSL(2,C)-character variety of π_1(M). We examine the dynamics of the action of Out(π_1(M)) on X(M), and in particular, we find an open set on which the action is properly discontinuous that is strictly larger than the interi…

We construct an action of the free group $F_n$ on the homotopy category of projective modules over a finite dimensional zigzag algebra. The main theorem in the paper is that this action is faithful. We describe the relationship between homotopy classes of paths in the punctured disc and complexes of projective zigzag m…

A 2-torus manifold is a closed smooth manifold of dimension $n$ with an effective action of a 2-torus group $(\Z_2)^n$ of rank $n$, and it is said to be locally standard if it is locally isomorphic to a faithful representation of $(\Z_2)^n$ on $\R^n$. This paper studies the equivariant classification of locally standar…

Let $F$ be a leafwise hyperbolic taut foliation of a closed 3-manifold $M$ and let $L$ be the leaf space of the pullback of $F$ to the universal cover of $M$. We show that if $F$ has branching, then the natural action of $π_1(M)$ on $L$ is faithful. We also show that if $F$ has a finite branch locus $B$ whose stabilize…

Let Gamma be a finitely generated, amenable group. Using an idea of E Ghys, we prove that if Gamma has a nontrivial, orientation-preserving action on the real line, then Gamma has an infinite, cyclic quotient. (The converse is obvious.) This implies that if Gamma has a faithful action on the circle, then some finite-in…

In this paper we survey some work on representations of $B_n$ given by the induced action on a homology module of some space. One of these, called the Lawrence-Krammer representation, recently came to prominence when it was shown to be faithful for all $n$. We will outline the methods used, applying them to a closely r…

Let H_g denote the closed 3-manifold obtained as the connected sum of g copies of S^2 times S^1, with free fundamental group of rank g. We prove that, for a finite group G acting on H_g which induces a faithful action on the fundamental group, there is an upper bound for the order of G which is quadratic in g, but that…

According to the classical Plante-Thurston Theorem, all nilpotent groups of $C^2$-diffeomorphisms of the closed interval are Abelian. Using techniques coming from the works of Denjoy and Pixton, Farb and Franks constructed a faithful action by $C^1$-diffeomorphisms of $[0,1]$ for every finitely-generated, torsion-free,…

In this paper, we introduce a study of prolongations of representations of Lie groups. We obtain a faithful (one-to-one) representation of TG where G is a finite-dimensional Lie group and TG is the tangent bundle of G, by using (not necessarily faithful) representations of G. We show that tangent functions of Lie group…

We consider finite groups which admit a faithful, smooth action on an acyclic manifold of dimension three, four or five (e.g. euclidean space). Our first main result states that a finite group acting on an acyclic 3- or 4-manifold is isomorphic to a subgroup of the orthogonal group O(3) or O(4), respectively. The analo…

Constructs CAT(0) actions for certain groups without unipotent elements.

Let M be a hyperbolizable, nontrivial compression body without toroidal boundary components. In this paper, we characterize which discrete and faithful representations of the fundamental group of M into PSL(2,C) are separable-stable. The set of separable-stable representations forms a domain of discontinuity for the ac…

Study on faithfulness of Burau representation for Artin-Tits groups.