arXiv research

Train track automata for fully irreducible elements in Out(F_r).

In \cite{Ka14} we produced an algorithm for deciding whether or not an element $φ\in Out(F_N)$ is an iwip ("fully irreducible") automorphism. At several points that algorithm was rather inefficient as it involved some general enumeration procedures as well as running several abstract processes in parallel. In this pape…

H. Masur and J. Smillie proved precisely which singularity index lists arise from pseudo-Anosov mapping classes. In search of an analogous theorem for outer automorphisms of free groups, Handel and Mosher ask: Is each connected, simplicial, (2r-1)-vertex graph the ideal Whitehead graph of a fully irreducible outer auto…

Any endomorphism of a finitely generated free group naturally descends to an injective endomorphism of its stable quotient. In this paper, we prove a geometric incarnation of this phenomenon: namely, that every expanding irreducible train track map inducing an endomorphism of the fundamental group gives rise to an expa…

Decomposes axis bundles into cubist structures for fully irreducible outer automorphisms.

By using a notion of a geometric Dehn twist in $\sharp_k(S^2 \times S^1)$, we prove that when projections of two $\mathbb{Z}$-splittings to the free factor complex are far enough from each other in the free factor complex, Dehn twist automorphisms corresponding to the $\mathbb{Z}$-splittings generate a free group of ra…

We study the Lipschitz metric on Outer Space and prove that fully irreducible elements of Out(F_n) act by hyperbolic isometries with axes which are strongly contracting. As a corollary, we prove that the axes of fully irreducible automorphisms in the Cayley graph of Out(F_n) are stable, meaning that a quasi-geodesic wi…

We show how to construct, for each $r \geq 3$, an ageometric, fully irreducible $φ\in Out(F_r)$ whose ideal Whitehead graph is the complete graph on $2r-1$ vertices. This paper is the second in a series of three where we show that precisely eighteen of the twenty-one connected, simplicial, five-vertex graphs are ideal …

We provide an effective algorithm for determining whether an element of the outer automorphism group of a free group is fully irreducible. Our method produces a finite list which can be checked for periodic proper free factors.

Study reveals uniform difference in stretch factors between genus two handlebody group and outer automorphism group.

We define lines of minima in the thick part of Outer space for the free group Fn with n>2 generators. We show that these lines of minima are contracting for the Lipschitz metric. Every fully irreducible outer automorphism of Fn defines such a line a minima. Now let G be a subgroup of the outer automorphism group of Fn …

We let $\varphi$ be an ageometric fully irreducible outer automorphism so that its Handel-Mosher axis bundle consists of a single unique axis. We show that the centralizer $Cen(\langle\varphi\rangle)$ of the cyclic subgroup generated by $\varphi$ equals the stabilizer $\text{Stab}(Λ^+_\varphi)$ of the attracting lamina…

We provide an example in each rank of an ageometric fully irreducible outer automorphism whose ideal Whitehead graph has a cut vertex. Consequently, we show that there exist examples in each rank of Handel-Mosher axis bundles that are not just a single axis, as well as of "nongeneric" behavior in the sense of the "trai…

We produce an algorithm that, given $φ\in Out(F_N)$, where $N\ge 2$, decides wether or not $φ$ is an iwip ("fully irreducible") automorphism.

Study on Hausdorff dimension of lamination endpoints for fully irreducible automorphisms.

Given a countable group $G$ splitting as a free product $G=G_1\ast\dots\ast G_k\ast F_N$, we establish classification results for subgroups of the group $Out(G,\mathcal{F})$ of all outer automorphisms of $G$ that preserve the conjugacy classes of each $G_i$. We show that every finitely generated subgroup $H\subseteq Ou…

CMC-1 trinoids (i.e. constant mean curvature one immersed surface with three regular embedded ends) in hyperbolic 3-space H^3 are irreducible generically, and the irreducible ones have been classified. However, the reducible case has not yet been fully treated, so in this paper we give an explicit description of CMC-1 …

For any finite collection $f_i$ of fully irreducible automorphisms of the free group $F_n$ we construct a connected $δ$-hyperbolic $Out(F_n)$-complex in which each $f_i$ has positive translation length.

In this paper we define currents relative to a free factor system. We prove that a fully irreducible outer automorphism relative to a free factor system acts with uniform north-south dynamics on a subspace of the space of projective relative currents.

We show that for k at least 3, given any matrix in GL(k,Z), there is a hyperbolic fully irreducible automorphism of the free group of rank k whose induced action on Z^k is the given matrix.

Inspired by results of Eskin and Mirzakhani counting closed geodesics of length $\le L$ in the moduli space of a fixed closed surface, we consider a similar question in the $Out(F_r)$ setting. The Eskin-Mirzakhani result can be equivalently stated in terms of counting the number of conjugacy classes (within the mapping…

A new method simulates a lazy version of a Markov chain for empirical inference.

Study shows Morse elements are common in acylindrically hyperbolic groups.

We prove that a "random" free group outer automorphism is an ageometric fully irreducible outer automorphism whose ideal Whitehead graph is a union of triangles. In particular, we show that its attracting (and repelling) tree is a nongeometric $\mathbb R$-tree all of whose branch points are trivalent

In this paper we prove that a fully irreducible outer automorphism relative to a non-exceptional free factor system acts loxodromically on the relative free factor complex as defined by Handel and Mosher. We also prove a north-south dynamic result for the action of such outer automorphisms on the closure of relative ou…

For a fully irreducible automorphism φof the free group F_k we compute the asymptotics of the intersection number n \mapsto i(T,T'φ^n) for trees T,T' in Outer space. We also obtain qualitative information about the geometry of the Guirardel core for the trees T and T'φ^n for n large.

Given a free-by-cyclic group $G = F_N \rtimes_\varphi \mathbb{Z}$ determined by any outer automorphism $\varphi \in \mathrm{Out}(F_N)$ which is represented by an expanding irreducible train-track map $f$, we construct a $K(G,1)$ $2$-complex $X$ called the folded mapping torus of $f$, and equip it with a semiflow. We sh…

Several known results, by Rivin, Calegari-Maher and Sisto, show that an element $φ_n\in Out(F_r)$, obtained after $n$ steps of a simple random walk on $Out(F_r)$, is fully irreducible with probability tending to 1 as $n\to\infty$. In this paper we construct a natural "train-track directed" random walk $\mathcal W$ on $…

We give a short proof of a theorem of Handel and Mosher stating that any finitely generated subgroup of $\text{Out}(F_N)$ either contains a fully irreducible automorphism, or virtually fixes the conjugacy class of a proper free factor of $F_N$, and we extend their result to non finitely generated subgroups of $\text{Ou…

Let $1 \rightarrow H \rightarrow G \rightarrow \mathbb{Z} \rightarrow 1$ be an exact sequence of hyperbolic groups induced by a fully irreducible automorphism $φ$ of the free group $H$. Let $H_1 (\subset H)$ be a finitely generated distorted subgroup of $G$. Then $H_1$ is of finite index in $H$. This is an analog of a …

Study connects group invariants through outer automorphisms and polynomial relations.

By proving precisely which singularity index lists arise from the pair of invariant foliations for a pseudo-Anosov surface homeomorphism, Masur and Smillie determined a Teichmueller flow invariant stratification of the space of quadratic differentials. In this paper we determine an analog to the theorem for $Out(F_3)$.…

We present two proofs of the fact, originally due to Reiner Martin, that any fully irreducible hyperbolic element of $Out(F_N)$ acts on the projectivized space of geodesic currents $\mathbb{P}Curr(F_N)$ with uniform north-south dynamics. The first proof, using purely train-track methods, provides an elaborated and corr…

Given a free group $F_n$, a fully irreducible automorphism $f \in \aut$, and a generic element $x \in F_n$, the elements $f^k(x)$ converge in the appropriate sense to an object called an attracting lamination of $f$. When the action of $f$ on $\frac{F_n}{[F_n, F_n]}$ has finite order, we introduce a homological version…

We developed a perturbation model for affine gravity theories.

We extend some results of [BF12] on subfactor projections to show that the projection of a free factor B to the free factor complex of the free factor A is well-defined with uniformly bound diameter, unless either A is contained in B or A and B are vertex stabilizers of a single splitting of F_n, i.e. they are disjoint…

We show that if a f.g. group $G$ has a non-elementary WPD action on a hyperbolic metric space $X$, then the number of $G$-conjugacy classes of $X$-loxodromic elements of $G$ coming from a ball of radius $R$ in the Cayley graph of $G$ grows exponentially in $R$. As an application we prove that for $N\ge 3$ the number of…

Subsurface projection has become indispensable in studying the geometry of the mapping class group and the curve complex of a surface. When the subsurface is an annulus, this projection is sometimes called relative twisting. We give two alternate versions of relative twisting for the outer automorphism group of a free …

By proving precisely which singularity index lists arise from the pair of invariant foliations for a pseudo-Anosov surface homeomorphism, Masur and Smillie determined a Teichmüller flow invariant stratification of the space of quadratic differentials. In this final paper of a three-paper series, we give a first step to…

This work constructs a finite-dimensional projective representation for a quantum Teichmüller model.

Let $φ$ be an atoroidal outer automorphism of the free group $F_n$. We study the Gromov boundary of the hyperbolic group $G_φ = F_n \rtimes_φ \mathbb{Z}$. We explicitly describe a family of embeddings of the complete bipartite graph $K_{3,3}$ into $\partial G_φ$. To do so, we define the directional Whitehead graph and …

Paper defines numerical criteria to test handlebody link irreducibility.

Study bounds growth rate of irreducible meanders, showing proportion vanishes.

Examines how irreducibility and rigidity affect digital images.

Paper finds a counterexample showing rectangle condition doesn't detect strong irreducibility.

Casson and Gordon gave the rectangle condition for strong irreducibility of Heegaard splittings [1]. We give a parity condition for irreducibility of Heegaard splittings of irreducible manifolds. As an application, we give examples of non-stabilized Heegaard splittings by doing a single Dehn twist.

We define and discuss a notion called fibered commensurability of outer automorphisms of free groups. This notion lets us study symmetry of outer automorphisms. The notion of fibered commensurability is first defined by Calegari-Sun-Wang on mapping class groups. The Nielsen-Thurston type of mapping classes is a commens…

An irreducible open 3-manifold $W$ is {\bf R}$^2$-irreducible if every proper plane in $W$ splits off a halfspace. In this paper it is shown that if such a $W$ is the universal cover of a connected, {\bf P}$^2$-irreducible open 3-manifold $M$ with finitely generated fundamental group, then either $W$ is homeomorphic to…