English
Related papers

Related papers: Equivalent non-isotopic spheres in 4-manifolds

200 papers

Let f, g be two homotopic smooth embeddings of a closed surface in a closed oriented 5-dimensional manifold. We show that if f admits a common algebraic dual 3-sphere, or if the fundamental group of the ambient space is trivial, then f and…

Geometric Topology · Mathematics 2026-03-10 Ruoyu Qiao

Given a closed, smooth 4-manifold $X$ and self-diffeomorphism $f$ that is topologically pseudo-isotopic to the identity, we study the question of whether $f$ is moreover smoothly pseudo-isotopic to the identity. If the fundamental group of…

Geometric Topology · Mathematics 2025-07-24 Patrick Orson , Mark Powell , Oscar Randal-Williams

We show that for any finitely presented group $G$, there is a simply connected closed 4-manifold containing an infinite family of topologically isotopic but smoothly inequivalent 2-links whose 2-link group is $G$. We also show that, if $G$…

Geometric Topology · Mathematics 2025-12-23 Younes Benyahia

We show how self-referential discs in 4-manifolds lead to the construction of pairs of discs with a common geometrically dual sphere which are homotopic rel $\partial$, concordant and coincide near their boundaries, yet are not properly…

Geometric Topology · Mathematics 2020-11-10 David Gabai

We construct the first examples of non-smoothable self-homeomorphisms of smooth $4$-manifolds with boundary that fix the boundary and act trivially on homology. As a corollary, we construct self-diffeomorphisms of $4$-manifolds with…

Geometric Topology · Mathematics 2025-02-27 Daniel Galvin , Roberto Ladu

In this paper, Problem 4.17 on R. Kirby's problem list is solved by constructing infinitely many aspherical 4-manifolds that are homology 4-spheres

Geometric Topology · Mathematics 2007-05-23 John G. Ratcliffe , Steven T. Tschantz

Kreck and Schafer produced the first examples of stably diffeomorphic closed smooth 4-manifolds which are not homotopy equivalent. They were constructed by applying the doubling construction to 2-complexes over certain finite abelian groups…

Geometric Topology · Mathematics 2026-02-06 Ian Hambleton , John Nicholson

This note serves to record examples of diffeomorphisms of closed smooth $4$-manifolds $X$ that are homotopic but not pseudoisotopic to the identity, and to explain why there are no such examples when $X$ is orientable and its fundamental…

Geometric Topology · Mathematics 2024-09-19 Manuel Krannich , Alexander Kupers

In this note we give a complete obstruction for two homotopic embeddings of a 2-sphere into a 5-manifold to be isotopic. The results are new even though the methods are classical, the main tool being the elimination of double points via a…

Geometric Topology · Mathematics 2024-12-11 Danica Kosanović , Rob Schneiderman , Peter Teichner

The purpose of this paper is to present some results on the existence of homologous, nonisotopic symplectic or lagrangian surfaces embedded in a simply connected symplectic 4-dimensional manifold.

Geometric Topology · Mathematics 2007-05-23 Stefano Vidussi

We investigate the realisability of the Casson-Sullivan invariant for homeomorphisms of smooth $4$-manifolds, which is the obstruction to a homeomorphism being stably pseudo-isotopic to a diffeomorphism, valued in the third cohomology of…

Geometric Topology · Mathematics 2024-05-14 Daniel A. P. Galvin

For a 4-manifold $M$ and a knot $k\colon\mathbb{S}^1\hookrightarrow\partial M$ with dual sphere $G\colon\mathbb{S}^2\hookrightarrow\partial M$, we compute the set $\mathbb{D}(M;k)$ of smooth isotopy classes of neat embeddings…

Geometric Topology · Mathematics 2025-10-08 Danica Kosanović , Peter Teichner

Techniques of gauge theory are used to define and compute an invariant of certain diffeomorphisms of 4-manifolds. The invariant vanishes for any diffeomorphism which is smoothly isotopic to the identity. As an application, we give the first…

Geometric Topology · Mathematics 2007-05-23 Daniel Ruberman

We prove a localization theorem for exotic diffeomorphisms, showing that every diffeomorphism of a compact simply-connected 4-manifold that is isotopic to the identity after stabilizing with one copy of $S^2 \times S^2$, is smoothly…

Geometric Topology · Mathematics 2026-02-27 Vyacheslav Krushkal , Anubhav Mukherjee , Mark Powell , Terrin Warren

We modify the proof of the disc embedding theorem for $4$-manifolds, which appeared as Theorem 5.1A in the book "Topology of 4-manifolds" by Freedman and Quinn, in order to construct geometrically dual spheres. These were claimed in the…

Geometric Topology · Mathematics 2025-12-09 Mark Powell , Arunima Ray , Peter Teichner

In the paper, we construct compact embedded $\lambda$-hypersurfaces which are diffeomorphic to a sphere and are not isometric to a standard sphere. Hence, one can not expect to have Alexandrov type theorem for $\lambda$-hypersurfaces.

Differential Geometry · Mathematics 2023-11-17 Qing-Ming Cheng , Junqi Lai , Guoxin Wei

The unknot U in S^4 has non-unique smooth spanning 3-balls up to isotopy fixing U. Equivalently there are properly embedded non-separating 3-balls in S^1xB^3 not properly isotopic to 1xB^3. More generally there exist non-separating…

Geometric Topology · Mathematics 2021-04-28 Ryan Budney , David Gabai

We construct noncomplex smooth 4-manifolds which admit genus-2 Lefschetz fibrations over S^2. The fibrations are necessarily hyperelliptic, and the resulting 4-manifolds are not even homotopy equivalent to complex surfaces. Furthermore,…

Geometric Topology · Mathematics 2007-05-23 Burak Ozbagci , András I. Stipsicz

A compact 4-dimensional manifold is a non-singular graph-manifold if it can be obtained by the glueing T^2-bundles over compact surfaces (with boundary) of negative Euler characteristics. If none of glueing diffeomorphisms respect the…

Geometric Topology · Mathematics 2014-10-01 A. Mozgova

If $\Sigma$ and $\Sigma'$ are homotopic embedded surfaces in a $4$-manifold then they may be related by a regular homotopy (at the expense of introducing double points) or by a sequence of stabilisations and destabilisations (at the expense…

Geometric Topology · Mathematics 2020-05-13 Oliver Singh