English

Rotation Groups

Metric Geometry 2018-02-27 v1

Abstract

A query, about the orbit PWP{\cal W} in real 3-space of a point PP under an isometry group W{\cal W} generated by edge rotations of a tetrahedron, leads to contrasting notions, W{\cal W} versus S{\cal S}, of "rotation group". The set R ={rA1,rA2}=\{r_{{\sf A}_1},r_{{\sf A}_2}\} of rotations rAir_{{\sf A} _i} about axes Ai{\sf A}_i generates two manifestations of an isometry group on 3\Re^3: (1). In the {\em stationary} group S:=S{\cal S:=S}(R), all axes {\sf B} are fixed under a rotation rAr_{\sf A} about {\sf A}. (2). In the {\em peripatetic} group W:=W{\cal W:=W}(R), each rAr_{\sf A} transforms every rotational axis BA{\sf B\not=A}. {\bf Theorem.} \ If the line A1{\sf A}_1 is skew to A2{\sf A}_2, if each rAir_{{\sf A}_i} is of infinite order, and if P3P\in\Re^3, then both of the orbits PSP{\cal S} and PWP{\cal W} are dense in 3\Re^3.

Keywords

Cite

@article{arxiv.1802.09097,
  title  = {Rotation Groups},
  author = {Donald Silberger and Sylvia Silberger},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:1802.09097},
  year   = {2018}
}

Comments

6 pages