Related papers: Concordance of certain 3-braids and Gauss diagrams
An element in Artin's braid group B_n is said to be periodic if some power of it lies in the center of B_n. In this paper we prove that all previously known algorithms for solving the conjugacy search problem in B_n are exponential in the…
We give an algorithm to decide if a given braid is a product of two factors which are conjugates of given powers of standard generators of the braid group. The same problem is solved in a certain class of Garside groups including Artin-Tits…
We provide linear lower bounds for the signature of positive braids in terms of the three genus of their braid closure. This yields linear bounds for the topological slice genus of knots that arise as closures of positive braids.
We prove that if a right-angled Artin group $A_\Gamma$ is abstractly commensurable to a group splitting non-trivially as an amalgam or HNN-extension over $\mathbb{Z}^n$, then $A_\Gamma$ must itself split non-trivially over $\mathbb{Z}^k$…
We prove a conjecture due to Makanin: if a and b are elements of the Artin braid group B_n such that a^k=b^k for some nonzero integer k, then a and b are conjugate. The proof involves the Nielsen-Thurston classification of braids.
Let $G$ be one of the Artin groups of finite type ${\mathbf B}_n={\mathbf C}_n$, and affine type $\tilde{\mathbf A}_{n-1}$ and $\tilde{\mathbf C}_{n-1}$. In this paper, we show that if $\alpha$ and $\beta$ are elements of $G$ such that…
Braids can be represented geometrically as curve diagrams. The geometric complexity of a braid is the minimal complexity of a curve diagram representing it. We introduce and study the corresponding notion of geometric generating function.…
An $n$-strand braid is order-preserving if its action on the free group $F_n$ preserves some bi-order of $F_n$. A braid $\beta$ is order-preserving if and only if the link $L$ obtained as the union of the closure of $\beta$ and its axis has…
We characterize all simple unitarizable representations of the braid group $B_3$ on complex vector spaces of dimension $d \leq 5$. In particular, we prove that if $\sigma_1$ and $\sigma_2$ denote the two generating twists of $B_3$, then a…
We construct ribbon surfaces of Euler characteristic one for several infinite families of alternating 3-braid closures. We also use a twisted Alexander polynomial obstruction to conclude the classification of smoothly slice knots which are…
We give a complete classification of simple representations of the braid group B_3 with dimension $\leq 5$ over any algebraically closed f ield. In particular, we prove that a simple d-dimensional representation $\rho: B_3 \to GL(V)$ is…
We give a systematic exposition of memory-length algorithms for solving equations in noncommutative groups. This exposition clarifies some points untouched in earlier expositions. We then focus on the main ingredient in these attacks:…
In the 1920's Artin defined the braid group in an attempt to understand knots in a more algebraic setting. A braid is a certain arrangement of strings in three-dimensional space. It is a celebrated theorem of Alexander that every knot is…
We introduce and study a family of groups $\mathbf{BB}_n$, called the blocked-braid groups, which are quotients of Artin's braid groups $\mathbf{B}_n$, and have the corresponding symmetric groups $\Sigma_n$ as quotients. They are defined by…
According to the Tits conjecture proved by Crisp and Paris, [CP], the subgroups of the braid group generated by proper powers of the Artin elements are presented by the commutators of generators which are powers of commuting elements. Hence…
We define the braid groups of a two-dimensional orbifold and introduce conventions for drawing braid pictures. We use these to realize the Artin groups associated to the spherical Coxeter diagrams A_n, B_n=C_n and D_n and the affine…
Using the band representation of the 3-strand braid group, it is shown that the genus of 3-braid links can be read off their skein polynomial. Some applications are given, in particular a simple proof of Morton's conjectured inequality and…
We establish a braid monodromy representation of functions satisfying an algebraic equation containing three terms (trinomial equation). We follow global analytic continuation of the roots to a trinomial algebraic equation that are…
We study several natural decision problems in braid groups and Artin groups. We classify the Artin groups with decidable submonoid membership problem in terms of the non-existence of certain forbidden induced subgraphs of the defining…
We give an explicit geometric argument that Artin's braid group $B_n$ is right-orderable. The construction is elementary, natural, and leads to a new, effectively computable, canonical form for braids which we call left-consistent canonical…