Related papers: Handle decompositions for a class of closed orient…

The decomposition of a two dimensional complex germ with non-isolated singularity into semi-algebraic sets is given. This decomposition consists of four classes: Riemannian cones defined over a Seifert fibered manifold, a topological cone…

In this paper, we will be concerned with the explicit classification of closed, oriented, simply-connected spin manifolds in dimension eight with vanishing cohomology in the odd dimensions. The study of such manifolds was begun by Stefan…

In this second paper of a two-part series, we prove that whenever a contact 3-manifold admits a uniform spinal open book decomposition with planar pages, its (weak, strong and/or exact) symplectic and Stein fillings can be classified up to…

By Thurston's hyperbolization theorem, irreducible handlebody-knots are classified into three classes: hyperbolic, toroidal, and atoroidal cylindrical. It is known that a non-trivial handlebody-knot of genus two has a finite symmetry group…

We show that the smooth $4$-manifold $M$ obtained by attaching a $2$-handle to $B^4$ along a certain knot $K\subset \partial B^4$ admits infinitely many absolutely exotic copies $M_n$, $n=0,1,2..$, such that each copy $M_n$ is obtained by…

A study of certain symplectic $4$-orbifolds with vanishing canonical class is initiated. We show that for any such symplectic $4$-orbifold $X$, there is a canonically constructed symplectic $4$-orbifold $Y$, together with a cyclic orbifold…

We consider mapping class groups \Gamma(M) = pi_0 Diff(M fix \partial M) of smooth compact simply connected oriented 4-manifolds M bounded by a collection of 3-spheres. We show that if M contains CP^2 (with either orientation) as a…

Let $M$ be a closed orientable 3-manifold with a genus two Heegaard splitting $(V_1, V_2; F)$ and a non-trivial JSJ-decomposition, where all components of the intersection of the JSJ-tori and $V_i$ are not $\partial$-parallel in $V_i$ for…

We exhibit some (compact and cusped) finite-volume hyperbolic four-manifolds M with perfect circle-valued Morse functions, that is circle-valued Morse functions $f\colon M \to S^1$ with only index 2 critical points. We construct in…

We extend several $g$-type theorems for connected, orientable homology manifolds without boundary to manifolds with boundary. As applications of these results we obtain K\"uhnel-type bounds on the Betti numbers as well as on certain…

We calculate explicitly the Betti numbers of a class of barely G2 manifolds - that is, G2 manifolds that are realised as a product of a Calabi-Yau manifold and a circle, modulo an involution. The particular class which we consider are those…

In this paper we refine our recently constructed invariants of $4$-dimensional $2$-handlebodies up to $2$-deformations. More precisely, we define invariants of pairs of the form $(W,\omega)$, where $W$ is a $4$-dimensional $2$-handlebody,…

Let $(M,\omega)$ be an eight-dimensional closed symplectic manifold equipped with a Hamiltonian circle action with only isolated fixed points. In this article, we will show that the Betti numbers of $M$ are unimodal, i.e. $b_0(M) \leq…

In 1981 Antonyan classified the orbits of SL$(8,\mathbb{C})$ on $\bigwedge^4 \mathbb{C}^8$. This is an example of a $\theta$-group action as introduced and studied by Vinberg. The orbits of a $\theta$-group are divided into three classes:…

Let $W$ be a nonorientable $4$-dimensional handlebody without $3$- and $4$-handles. We show that $W$ admits a Lefschetz fibration over the $2$-disk, whose regular fiber is a nonorientable surface with nonempty boundary. This is an analogue…

Let $\mathrm{Mod}(S_g)$ be the mapping class group of the closed orientable surface $S_g$ of genus $g\geq 2$. In this paper, we derive necessary and sufficient conditions under which two torsion elements in $\mathrm{Mod}(S_g)$ will have…

Let $M_0$ be a compact and orientable 3-manifold. After capping off spherical boundaries with balls and removing any torus boundaries, we prove that the resulting manifold $M$ contains handlebodies of arbitrary genus such that the closure…

Two criteria for a closed connected definite 4-manifold with infinite cyclic fundamental group to be TOP-split are given. One criterion extends a sufficient condition made in a previous paper. The result is equivalent to a purely algebraic…

We determine the possible finite groups $G$ of symplectic automorphisms of hyperk\"ahler manifolds which are deformation equivalent to the second Hilbert scheme of a K3 surface. We prove that $G$ has such an action if, and only if, it is…

Let $M$ be a closed, oriented, connected 3--manifold and $(B,\pi)$ an open book decomposition on $M$ with page $\Sigma$ and monodromy $\varphi$. It is easy to see that the first Betti number of $\Sigma$ is bounded below by the number of…