Related papers: Gordian split links in the Gehring ropelength prob…
A gordian unlink is a finite number of unknots that are not topologically linked, each with prescribed length and thickness, and that cannot be disentangled into the trivial link by an isotopy preserving length and thickness throughout. In…
In 1974, Gehring posed the problem of minimizing the length of two linked curves separated by unit distance. This constraint can be viewed as a measure of thickness for links, and the ratio of length over thickness as the ropelength. In…
We describe some problems, observations, and conjectures concerning thickness and packing density of knots and links in $\sp^3$ and $\R^3$. We prove the thickness of a nontrivial knot or link in $\sp^3$ is no more than $\frac{\pi}{4}$, the…
Physical knots and links are one-dimensional submanifolds of R^3 with fixed length and thickness. We show that isotopy classes in this category can differ from those of classical knot and link theory. In particular we exhibit a Gordian…
We construct a pair of isotopic link configurations that are not thick isotopic while preserving total length.
Ropelength and embedding thickness are related measures of geometric complexity of classical knots and links in Euclidean space. In their recent work, Freedman and Krushkal posed a question regarding lower bounds for embedding thickness of…
We prove the existence of families of distinct isotopy classes of physical unknots through the key concept of parametrised thickness. These unknots have prescribed length, tube thickness, a uniform bound on curvature, and cannot be…
We show that for links with at most 5 components, the only finite type homotopy invariants are products of the linking numbers. In contrast, we show that for links with at least 9 components, there must exist finite type homotopy invariants…
In 1974, D. Rolfsen asked: If two PL links in $S^3$ are isotopic (=homotopic through embeddings), then are they PL isotopic? We prove that they are PL isotopic to another pair of links which are indistinguishable from each other by finite…
This paper gives the first examples of gordian unlinks. The components of these unlinks cannot be separated while maintaining constant length and thickness. We construct infinite families of 2-component gordian unlinks and also construct…
In an earlier note [arXiv:2301.00295] it was shown that there is an upper bound to the number of disjoint Hopf links (and certain related links) that can be embedded in the unit cube where there is a fixed separation required between the…
The ropelength problem asks for the minimum-length configuration of a knotted diameter-one tube embedded in Euclidean three-space. The core curve of such a tube is called a tight knot, and its length is a knot invariant measuring…
This note initiates an investigation of packing links into a region of Euclidean space to achieve a maximal density subject to geometric constraints. The upper bounds obtained apply only to the class of homotopically essential links and…
Arone and the second author showed that when the dimensions are in the stable range, the rational homology and homotopy of the high dimensional anologues of spaces of long knots can be calculated as the homology of a direct sum of finite…
A link in the 3-sphere is called (smoothly) slice if its components bound disjoint smoothly embedded disks in the 4-ball. More generally, given a 4-manifold M with a distinguished circle in its boundary, a link in the 3-sphere is called…
The ropelength of a knot or link is the minimal number of inches of 1-inch-thick rope that it takes to tie it. The relationship of this measurement to knot and link invariants has been studied by various authors. We give the first results…
We study homotopy groups of spaces of long links in Euclidean space of codimension at least three. With multiple components, they admit split injections from homotopy groups of spheres. We show that, up to knotting, these account for all…
Most real-world networks are embedded in latent geometries. If a node in a network is found in the vicinity of another node in the latent geometry, the two nodes have a disproportionately high probability of being connected by a link. The…
The ropelength of a knot is the minimum contour length of a tube of unit radius that traces out the knot in three dimensional space without self-overlap, colloquially the minimum amount of rope needed to tie a given knot. Theoretical upper…
The ropelength of a knot is the quotient of its length and its thickness, the radius of the largest embedded normal tube around the knot. We prove existence and regularity for ropelength minimizers in any knot or link type; these are…