arXiv research

New invariant measures how many twists are needed to unknot welded knots.

Unified method proves integrality of LMOV invariants for framed unknot.

Single twist can unknot certain knots, study shows.

We introduce a new knot diagram invariant called the Self-Crossing Index (SCI). Using SCI, we provide bounds for unknotting two families of framed unknots. For one of these families, unknotting using framed Reidemeister moves is significantly harder than unknotting using regular Reidemeister moves. We also investigate …

Study shows quasi-additivity of Δ-unknotting number for braids.

New bounds and examples for sphere unknotting numbers.

New knot invariant λ bounds rational unknotting.

New invariants show stronger virtual knot sets.

Given a knot K in S^3, let u^-(K) (respectively, u^+(K)) denote the minimum number of negative (respectively, positive) crossing changes among all unknotting sequences for K. We use knot Floer homology to construct the invariants l^-(K), l^+(K) and l(K), which give lower bounds on u^-(K), u^+(K) and the unknotting numb…

Given a knot K we introduce a new invariant coming from the Blanchfield pairing and we show that it gives a lower bound on the unknotting number of K. This lower bound subsumes the lower bounds given by the Levine-Tristram signatures, by the Nakanishi index and it also subsumes the Lickorish obstruction to the unknotti…

In this paper we introduce the notion of an unknotting index for virtual knots. We give some examples of computation by using writhe invariants, and discuss a relationship between the unknotting index and the virtual knot module. In particular, we show that for any non-negative integer $n$ there exists a virtual knot w…

We use an estimate on the Thurston--Bennequin invariant of a Legendrian link in terms of its Kauffman-polynomial to show that links of topological unknots, e.g. the Borromean rings or the Whithead link, may not be represented by Legendrian links of Legendrian unknots.

The unknotting number is the classical invariant of a knot. However, its determination is difficult in general. To obtain the unknotting number from definition one has to investigate all possible diagrams of the knot. We tried to show the unknotting number can be obtained from any one diagram of the knot. To do this we…

We introduce the Alexander-Beck module of a knot as a canonical refinement of the classical Alexander module, and we prove that this new invariant is an unknot-detector.

We study three knot invariants related to smoothly immersed disks in the four-ball. These are the four-ball crossing number, which is the minimal number of normal double points of such a disk bounded by a given knot; the slicing number, which is the minimal number of crossing changes to a slice knot; and the concordanc…

New lower bounds on the unknotting number of a knot are constructed from the classical knot signature function. These bounds can be twice as strong as previously known signature bounds. They can also be stronger than known bounds arising from Heegaard Floer and Khovanov homology. Results include new bounds on the Gordi…

The unknotting number of a knot is the minimum number of crossings one must change to turn that knot into the unknot. We work with a generalization of unknotting number due to Mathieu-Domergue, which we call the untwisting number. The p-untwisting number is the minimum number (over all diagrams of a knot) of full twist…

In the previous paper, we considered a link diagram invariant of Hass and Nowik type using regular smoothing and unknotting number, to estimate the number of Reidemeister moves needed for unlinking. In this paper, we introduce a new link diagram invariant using irregular smoothing, and give an example of a knot diagram…

Every classical or virtual knot is equivalent to the unknot via a sequence of extended Reidemeister moves and the so-called forbidden moves. The minimum number of forbidden moves necessary to unknot a given knot is an invariant we call the {\it forbidden number}. We relate the forbidden number to several known invarian…

Theory is developed for linear-quadratic at infinity generating families for Legendrian knots in R^3. It is shown that the unknot with maximal Thurston--Bennequin invariant of -1 has a unique linear-quadratic at infinity generating family, up to fiber-preserving diffeomorphism and stabilization. From this, invariant ge…

In [BF12] the authors associated to a knot K an invariant n_R(K) which is defined using the Blanchfield form and which gives a lower bound on the unknotting number. In this paper we express n_R(K) in terms of Levine-Tristram signatures and nullities of K. In the proof we also show that the Blanchfield form with real co…

The surgery unknotting number of a Legendrian link is defined as the minimal number of particular oriented surgeries that are required to convert the link into a Legendrian unknot. Lower bounds for the surgery unknotting number are given in terms of classical invariants of the Legendrian link. The surgery unknotting nu…

Using unknotting number, we introduce a link diagram invariant of Hass and Nowik type, which changes at most by 2 under a Reidemeister move. As an application, we show that a certain infinite sequence of diagrams of the trivial two-component link need quadratic number of Reidemeister moves for being unknotted with resp…

It is shown that Legendrian (resp. transverse) cable links in the 3-sphere with its standard tight contact structure, i.e. links consisting of an unknot and a cable of that unknot, are classified by their oriented link type and the classical invariants (Thurston-Bennequin invariant and rotation number in the Legendrian…

We construct and prove a diagrammatic version of the Duflo isomorphism between the invariant subalgebra of the symmetric algebra of a Lie algebra and the center of the universal enveloping algebra. This version implies the original for metrized Lie algebras (Lie algebras with an invariant non-degenerate bilinear form).…

We show that there are links whose individual components are concordant to the unknot, but which are not concordant to any link with unknotted components. We give examples in the topological category, and examples in the smooth category which are topologically slice. We also give generalizations regarding components of…

The (ordinary) unknotting-number of 1-dimensional knots, which is defined by using the crossing-change, is a very basic and important invariant. It is very natural to consider the `unknotting-number' associated with other local-moves on n-dimensional knots, where n is a natural number. In this paper we prove the follow…

The paper studies unknotting operations and numbers for plus-welded knotoids.

Solves a recursion for Gromov-Witten invariants of the unknot.

Every classical knot is band-pass equivalent to the unknot or the trefoil. The band-pass class of a knot is a concordance invariant. Every ribbon knot, for example, is band-pass equivalent to the unknot. Here we introduce the long virtual knot concordance group $\mathscr{VC}$. It is shown that for every concordance cla…

We prove that a knot is the unknot if and only if its reduced Khovanov cohomology has rank 1. The proof has two steps. We show first that there is a spectral sequence beginning with the reduced Khovanov cohomology and abutting to a knot homology defined using singular instantons. We then show that the latter homology i…

We introduce a Poincaré polynomial with two-variable $t$ and $x$ for knots, derived from Khovanov homology, where the specialization $(t, x)$ $=$ $(1, -1)$ is a Vassiliev invariant of order $n$. Since for every $n$, there exist non-trivial knots with the same value of the Vassiliev invariant of order $n$ as that of the…

Formula derived for cabled knots' concordance invariants.

For a knot K in S^3, let T(K) be the characteristic toric sub-orbifold of the orbifold (S^3,K) as defined by Bonahon and Siebenmann. If K has unknotting number one, we show that an unknotting arc for K can always be found which is disjoint from T(K), unless either K is an EM-knot (of Eudave-Munoz) or (S^3,K) contains a…

We provide a geometric construction of the boundary states for handlebodies which we in turn use to give a geometric formula for the Witten-Reshetikhin-Turaev quantum invariants. We then analyze the asymptotics of this invariant in the special case of a three manifold given by 1-surgery on a knot and we show that if th…

We classify Legendrian unknots in overtwisted contact structures on $S^3$. In particular, we show that up to contact isotopy for every pair $(n,\pm(n-1))$ with $n>0$ there are exactly two oriented non-loose Legendrian unknots in $S^3$ with Thurston-Bennequin invariant $n$ and rotation number $\pm(n-1)$. (Only one overt…

Paper determines 2-adjacent knots up to 12 crossings.

We show that the order of torsion homology classes in Bar-Natan deformation of Khovanov homology is a lower bound for the unknotting number. We give examples of knots that this is a better lower bound than |s(K)/2|, where s(K) is the Rasmussen s invariant defined by the Bar-Natan spectral sequence.

In this paper, we prove that region crossing change on a link diagram is an unknotting operation if and only if the link is proper. A description of the behavior of region crossing change on link diagrams is given. Furthermore we also discuss the relation between region crossing change and the Arf invariant of proper l…

It is known that any surface knot can be transformed to an unknotted surface knot or a surface knot which has a diagram with no triple points by a finite number of 1-handle additions. The minimum number of such 1-handles is called the unknotting number or the triple point cancelling number, respectively. In this paper,…

The algebraic unknotting number u_a(K) of a knot K was introduced by Hitoshi Murakami. It equals the minimal number of crossing changes needed to turn K into an Alexander polynomial one knot. In a previous paper the authors used the Blanchfield form of a knot K to define an invariant n(K) and proved that n(K) is a lowe…

Study inequalities between knot invariants and compute new bounds.

Using elementary equalities between various cables of the unknot and the Hopf link, we prove the Wheels and Wheeling conjectures of [Bar-Natan, Garoufalidis, Rozansky and Thurston, arXiv:q-alg/9703025] and [Deligne, letter to Bar-Natan, January 1996, http://www.ma.huji.ac.il/~drorbn/Deligne/], which give, respectively,…

We consider a knot homotopy as a cylinder in 4-space. An ordinary triple point $p$ of the cylinder is called {\em coherent} if all three branches intersect at $p$ pairwise with the same index. A {\em triple unknotting} of a classical knot $K$ is a homotopy which connects $K$ with the trivial knot and which has as singu…

We explore the application of automated reasoning techniques to unknot detection, a classical problem of computational topology. We adopt a two-pronged experimental approach, using a theorem prover to try to establish a positive result (i.e. that a knot is the unknot), whilst simultaneously using a model finder to try …

The study explores relations between various knot invariants.

Introducing a way to modify knots using $n$-trivial rational tangles, we show that knots with given values of Vassiliev invariants of bounded degree can have arbitrary unknotting number (extending a recent result of Ohyama, Taniyama and Yamada). The same result is shown for 4-genera and finite reductions of the homolog…

Delta-unlinking number measures how to unlink algebraically split links.