Related papers: On transversally simple knots
The conormal Lagrangian $L_K$ of a knot $K$ in $\mathbb{R}^3$ is the submanifold of the cotangent bundle $T^* \mathbb{R}^3$ consisting of covectors along $K$ that annihilate tangent vectors to $K$. By intersecting with the unit cotangent…
In the classical knot theory there is a well-known notion of descending diagram. From an arbitrary diagram one can easily obtain, by some crossing changes, a descending diagram which is a diagram of the unknot or unlink. In this paper the…
We construct an enhanced version of knot contact homology, and show that we can deduce from it the group ring of the knot group together with the peripheral subgroup. In particular, it completely determines a knot up to smooth isotopy. The…
We study knots in $\mathbb{S}^3$ obtained by the intersection of a minimal surface in $\mathbb{R}^4$ with a small 3-sphere centered at a branch point. We construct examples of new minimal knots. In particular we show the existence of…
The untwisting number of a knot K is the minimum number of null-homologous twists required to convert K to the unknot. Such a twist can be viewed as a generalization of a crossing change, since a classical crossing change can be effected by…
We study contact manifolds that arise as cyclic branched covers of transverse knots in the standard contact 3-sphere. We discuss properties of these contact manifolds and describe them in terms of open books and contact surgeries. In many…
Chern-Simons theories, which are topological quantum field theories, provide a field theoretic framework for the study of knots and links in three dimensions. These are rare examples of quantum field theories which can be exactly and…
Knotted ribbons form an important topic in knot theory. They have applications in natural sciences, such as cyclic duplex DNA modeling. A flat knotted ribbon can be obtained by gently pulling a knotted ribbon tight so that it becomes flat…
Let $\mathrm S^3$ be the unit sphere of $\mathbb C^2$ with its standard Cauchy-Riemann (CR) structure. This paper investigates the CR geometry of curves in $\mathrm S^3$ which are transversal to the contact distribution, using the local CR…
In a group, a non-trivial element is called a generalized torsion element if some non-empty finite product of its conjugates equals to the identity. We say that a knot has generalized torsion if its knot group admits such an element. For a…
We develop a topological model of knots and links arising from a single (or multiple processive) round(s) of recombination starting with an unknot, unlink, or (2,m)-torus knot or link substrate. We show that all knotted or linked products…
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…
We prove a finiteness property of the values of the skein polynomial of homogeneous knots which allows to establish large classes of such knots to have arbitrarily unsharp Bennequin inequality (for the Thurston-Bennequin invariant of any of…
We construct new knot polynomials. Let $V$ be the standard solid torus in 3-space and let $pr$ be its standard projection onto an annulus. Let $M$ be the space of all smooth oriented knots in $V$ such that the restriction of $pr$ is an…
A knot K is called n-adjacent to the unknot, if K admits a projection containing n generalized crossings such that changing any m (no larger than n) of them yields a projection of the unknot. We show that a non-trivial satellite knot K is…
We establish a relation between several easy-to-calculate numerical invariants of generic knots in $\mathbb{H}^2 \times S^1$, and use it to give a new method of computing the Thurston-Bennequin number of Legendrian knots in the tight…
Links of singularity and generalized algebraic links are ways of constructing three-manifolds and smooth links inside them from potentially singular complex algebraic surfaces and complex curves inside them. We prove that knot lattice…
We apply results from both contact topology and exceptional surgery theory to study when Legendrian surgery on a knot yields a reducible manifold. As an application, we show that a reducible surgery on a non-cabled positive knot of genus g…
The recent proof by Bigelow and Krammer that the braid groups are linear opens the possibility of applications to the study of knots and links. It was proved by the first author and Menasco that any closed braid representative of the unknot…
In formulating a non-orientable analogue of the Milnor Conjecture on the $4$-genus of torus knots, Batson developed an elegant construction that produces a smooth non-orientable spanning surface in $B^4$ for a given torus knot in $S^3$.…