Related papers: On knots having zero negative unknotting number

Kashaev's invariants for a knot in a three sphere are generalized to invariants of a knot in a three manifold. A relation between the newly constructed invariants and the hyperbolic volume of the knot complement is observed for some knots…

We study the band-unknotting number $u_{nb}(K)$ of a knot $K$, and how it behaves with respect to connect sums. We show that this sub-additive function is not additive under connected sums, by finding infinitely many examples of knots $K_1,…

Let K be a knot that has an unknotting tunnel tau. We prove that K admits a strong involution that fixes tau pointwise if and only if K is a two-bridge knot and tau its upper or lower tunnel.

For $p\geq 1$ one can define a generalization of the unknotting number $tu_p$ called the $p$th untwisting number which counts the number of null-homologous twists on at most $2p$ strands required to convert the knot to the unknot. We show…

An essential goal in the study of finite type invariants of some objects (knots, manifolds) is the construction of a universal finite type invariant, universal in the sense that it contains all finite type invariants of the given objects.…

We give three algorithms to determine the crosscap number of a knot in the 3-sphere using $0$-efficient triangulations and normal surface theory. Our algorithms are shown to be correct for a larger class of complements of knots in closed…

The first and last named authors have demonstrated the existence of knots for which every integral slope is non-characterizing. In this short note, we extend this result in two ways. There exists a knot that shares for every integer n the…

A knot in the 3-sphere is called an L-space knot if it admits a nontrivial Dehn surgery yielding an L-space, i.e. a rational homology 3-sphere with the smallest possible Heegaard Floer homology. Given a knot K, take an unknotted circle c…

In this note we use Blanchfield forms to study knots that can be turned into an unknot using a single $\overline{t}_{2k}$ move.

We construct two knot invariants. The first knot invariant is a sum constructed using linking numbers. The second is an invariant of flat knots and is a formal sum of flat knots obtained by smoothing pairs of crossings. This invariant can…

Let K be a knot in the 3-sphere. A slope p/q is said to be characterising for K if whenever p/q surgery on K is homeomorphic, via an orientation-preserving homeomorphism, to p/q surgery on another knot K' in the 3-sphere, then K and K' are…

A polynomial knot is a smooth embedding $\kappa: \real \to \real^n$ whose components are polynomials. The case $n = 3$ is of particular interest. It is both an object of real algebraic geometry as well as being an open ended topological…

We study positive braid knots (the knots in the three-sphere realized as positive braid closures) through the lens of the L-space conjecture. This conjecture predicts that if $K$ is a non-trivial positive braid knot, then for all $r <…

For pairs of knots K and J in the three-sphere, we consider the set of four-tuples of integers (g,x,y,z) for which there is a cobordism from K to J of genus g having x, y, and z, critical points of index 0, 1, and 2, respectively. We…

The curves of zero intensity of a complex optical field can form knots and links: optical vortex knots. Both theoretical constructions and experiments have so far been restricted to the very small families of torus knots or lemniscate…

Neuwirth asked if any non-trivial knot in the 3-sphere can be embedded in a closed surface so that the complement of the surface is a connected essential surface for the knot complement. In this paper, we examine some variations on this…

The concordance genus of a knot K is the minimum three-genus among all knots concordant to K. For prime knots of 10 or fewer crossings there have been three knots for which the concordance genus was unknown. Those three cases are now…

Any 2-bridge knot in the 3-sphere has a bridge sphere from which any other bridge surface can be obtained by stabilization, meridional stabilization, perturbation and proper isotopy.

We show that there exist infinitely many pairs of distinct knots in the 3-sphere such that each pair can yield homeomorphic lens spaces by the same Dehn surgery. Moreover, each knot of the pair can be chosen to be a torus knot, a satellite…

The crosscap number of a knot in the 3-sphere is defined as the minimal first Betti number of non-orientable subsurfaces bounded by the knot. In this paper, we determine the crosscap numbers of pretzel knots. The key ingredient to obtain…