Ajay K. Nair | Searcharxiv

arXiv2026

From discrete to dense: explorations in the moduli space of triangles

The moduli space of triangles is a two-dimensional space that records triangle shapes in the plane, considered up to similarity. We study the subset corresponding to \textit{lattice triangles}, which are triangles whose vertices have integer coordinates. We prove that this subset is \textit{dense}, that is, every triangle shape can be approximated arbitrarily well by lattice triangles. However, when one restricts to lattice triangles in the square $[-N,N]^2$, their shapes do \textit{not} become uniformly distributed in the moduli space as $N$ grows. Along the way, we encounter connections with geometry, number theory, analysis, and probability.

math.MG↗

arXiv2022

Factoring periodic maps into Dehn twists

Let $\text{Mod}(S_g)$ be the mapping class group of the closed orientable surface $S_g$ of genus $g \geq 1$. In this paper, we develop various methods for factoring periodic mapping classes into Dehn twists, up to conjugacy. As applications, we develop methods for factoring certain roots of Dehn twists as words in Dehn twists. We will also show the existence of conjugates of periodic maps of order $4g$ and $4g+2$, for $g\geq 2$, whose product is pseudo-Anosov.

math.GT↗