arXiv · 2507.16432
Collapsing in polygonal dynamics
Abstract
We define polygonal dynamics as a family of dynamical systems acting on points in projective spaces. The most famous example is the pentagram map. Similar collapsing phenomena seem to occur in most of these systems. We prove it in some case, and conjecture that it almost always happens. Moreover, we give a formula for the limit point in term of roots of $d+1$ degree polynomials (where $d$ is the dimension of the projective space). We do so by generalizing Glick's operator, interpreted as an infinitesimal monodromy. This answers questions about its reappearance in many systems, together with preserved quantities. We apply these results to several polygonal dynamics in $\mathbb{P}^1$ and introduce a new one called ``staircase'' cross-ratio dynamics, for which we study particular configurations.
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Jean-Baptiste Stiegler. 2025-07-22. Collapsing in polygonal dynamics. https://arxiv.org/abs/2507.16432
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