Length functions on mapping class groups and simplicial volumes of mapping tori

Abstract

Let $M$ be a closed orientable manifold. We introduce two numerical invariants, called filling volumes, on the mapping class group $\mathrm{MCG}(M)$ of $M$, which are defined in terms of filling norms on the space of singular boundaries on $M$, both with real and with integral coefficients. We show that filling volumes are length functions on $\mathrm{MCG}(M)$, we prove that the real filling volume of a mapping class $f$ is equal to the simplicial volume of the corresponding mapping torus $E_f$, while the integral filling volume of $f$ is not smaller than the stable integral simplicial volume of $E_f$. We discuss several vanishing and non-vanishing results for the filling volumes. As applications, we show that the hyperbolic volume of $3$-dimensional mapping tori is not subadditive with respect to their monodromy, and that the real and the integral filling norms on integral boundaries are often non-biLipschitz equivalent.