English

Isotopy classification of Morse polynomials of degree 4 in ${\mathbb R}^2$

Algebraic Geometry 2026-04-27 v11

Abstract

We introduce a system of invariants of isotopy classes of Morse polynomials R2R1{\mathbb R}^2 \to {\mathbb R}^1, prove its completeness for polynomials of degrees 4\leq 4, calculate all 71 possible values of these invariants for the case of degree four, and realize them by concrete Morse polynomials. Also we calculate the number of classes (up to isotopy and reflections in R2{\mathbb R}^2) of strictly Morse polynomials of degree four with the maximal possible number of real critical points.

Keywords

Cite

@article{arxiv.2311.11113,
  title  = {Isotopy classification of Morse polynomials of degree 4 in ${\mathbb R}^2$},
  author = {V. A. Vassiliev},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2311.11113},
  year   = {2026}
}