arXiv subjects

Jens Harlander

Publications and source records attributed to Jens Harlander.

12 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Circuit Decomposition for Triangulations of Surfaces

An Euler circuit of a graph is a closed path that visits every edge of the graph exactly once. Euler circuit and circuit decomposition problems can also be formulated for higher dimensional simplicial complexes. An Euler k-circuit in K is a cyclic sequence of vertices v_1...v_n such that every k+1 adjacent terms { v_i,v_{i+1},...,v_{i+k} } (indexed modulo n) form a k-simplex, and every k-simplex of K appears exactly once in the sequence v_1v_2...v_n(v_1v_2...v_k). We investigate the 2-circuit decomposition problem for triangulated closed compact surfaces. For an orientable triangulated surface we use interior angles of paths to define an obstruction that lives in the first cohomology of the surface. It vanishes if and only if the surface has a 2-circuit decomposition. We also show that a non-orientable triangulated surface has a 2-circuit decomposition if and only if its orientable 2-fold cover does.

math.GT↗

arXiv2025

Local indicability in the presence of diagrammatic reducibility

If a complex $X$ is a subcomplex of a diagrammatically reducible 2-complex $Y$ that has locally indicable fundamental group, then $X$ has locally indicable fundamental group. This is a consequence of the Corson-Trace characterization of diagrammatic reducibility. In this paper we use a Corson-Trace like characterization of diagrammatic reducibility away from a subcomplex to obtain a considerable stronger result. We apply this to the question of local indicability in the context of Whitehead's asphericity conjecture. We show that an injective labeled oriented tree (LOT) that is diagrammatically reducible of degree 2, and all its quotients are as well, is locally indicable.

math.GT↗

arXiv2023

Relative Non-Positive Immersion

A 2-complex $K$ has collapsing non-positive immersion if for every combinatorial immersion $X\to K$, where $X$ is finite, connected and does not allow collapses, either $χ(X)\le 0$ or $X$ is point. This concept is due to Wise who also showed that this property implies local indicability of the fundamental group $π_1(K)$. In this paper we study a relative version of collapsing non-positive immersion that can be applied to 2-complex pairs $(L,K)$: The pair has relative collapsing non-positive immersion if for every combinatorial immersion $f\colon X\to L$, where $X$ is finite, connected and does not allow collapses, either $χ(X)\le χ(Y)$, where $Y$ is the essential part of the preimage $f^{-1}(K)$, or $X$ is a point. We show that under certain conditions a transitivity law holds: If $(L,K)$ has relative collapsing non-positive immersion and $K$ has collapsing non-positive immersion, then $L$ has collapsing non-positive immersion. This article is partly motivated by the following open question: Do reduced injective labeled oriented trees have collapsing non-positive immersion? We answer this question in the affirmative for certain important special cases.

math.GT↗

arXiv2022

The Local Structure of Injective LOT-Complexes

Labeled oriented trees, LOT's, encode spines of ribbon discs in the 4-ball and ribbon 2-knots in the 4-sphere. The unresolved asphericity question for these spines is a major test case for Whitehead's asphericity conjecture. In this paper we give a complete description of the link of a reduced injective LOT complex. An important case is the following: If $\Gamma$ is a reduced injective LOT that does not contain boundary reduced sub-LOTs, then $lk(K(\Gamma))$ is a bi-forest. As a consequence $K(\Gamma)$ is aspherical, in fact DR, and its fundamental group is locally indicable. We also show that a general injective LOT complex is aspherical. Some of our results have already appeared in print over the last two decades and are collected here.

math.GT↗

arXiv2021

Ribbon 2-knot groups of Coxeter type

Wirtinger presentations of deficiency 1 appear in the context of knots, long virtual knots, and ribbon 2-knots. They are encoded by (word) labeled oriented trees and, for that reason, are also called LOT presentations. These presentations are a well known and important testing ground for the validity (or failure) of Whitehead's asphericity conjecture. In this paper we define LOTs of Coxeter type and show that for every given $n$ there exists a (prime) LOT of Coxeter type with group of rank $n$. We also show that label separated Coxeter LOTs are aspherical.

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arXiv2021

Directed diagrammatic reducibility

We introduce the notion of directed diagrammatic reducibility which is a relative version of diagrammatic reducibility. Directed diagrammatic reducibility has strong group theoretic and topological consequences. A multi-relator version of the Freiheitssatz in the presence of directed diagrammatic reducibility is given. Results concerning asphericity and $π_1$-injectivity of subcomplexes are shown. We generalize the Corson-Trace characterization of diagrammatic reducibility to directed diagrammatic reducibility. We compare diagrammatic reducibility of relative presentations to directed diagrammatic reducibility. Classical tools for showing diagrammatic reducibility, such as the weight test, the max/min test, and small cancellation techniques are adapted to directed diagrammatic reducibility. The paper ends with some applications to labeled oriented trees.

math.GT↗

arXiv2021

Relative Combinatorial Asphericity

Relative notions of combinatorial asphericity have been used to prove that injective labeled oriented trees (which encode spines of ribbon 2-knots) are aspherical. This article presents an overview and comparison of the different notions of relative combinatorial asphericity. It also contains new results concerning characterizations of relative DR and tests that imply relative combinatorial asphericity. The last section of the article is devoted to examples that illustrate the concepts and the use of the tests given.

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arXiv2021

Relative Vertex Asphericity

Diagrammatic reducibility DR and its generalization vertex asphericity VA are combinatorial tools developed for detecting asphericity of a 2-complex. Here we present tests for a relative version of VA that apply to pairs of 2-complexes $(L,K)$, where $K$ is a subcomplex of $L$. We show that a relative weight test holds for injective labeled oriented trees, implying that they are VA and hence aspherical. This strengthens a result obtained by the authors in 2017 and simplifies the original proof.

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arXiv2016

Injective Labeled Oriented Trees are Aspherical

A labeled oriented tree is called injective if each generator occurs at most once as an edge label. We show that injective labeled oriented trees are aspherical. The proof relies on a new relative asphericity test based on a lemma of Stallings.

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arXiv2015

Factor Groups of Knot and LOT Groups

A classical result of H. S. M. Coxeter asserts that a certain quotient $B(m,n)$ of the braid group $B(m)$ on $m$ strands is finite if and only if $(m,n)$ corresponds to the type of one of the five Platonic solids. If ${\bf k}$ is a knot or virtual knot, one can study similar quotients $G({\bf k}, n)$ for the corresponding knot group. We identify a class of long virtual knots ${\bf k}$ for which $G({\bf k}, n)$ is infinite for $n\ge 2$. The main feature of these long virtual knots is that their Wirtinger complexes are non-positively curved squared complexes.

math.GR↗

arXiv2014

Aspherical Word Labeled Oriented Graphs and Cyclically Presented Groups

A {\em word labeled oriented graph} (WLOG) is an oriented graph $\cal G$ on vertices $X=\{ x_1,\ldots ,x_k\}$, where each oriented edge is labeled by a word in $X^{\pm1}$. WLOGs give rise to presentations which generalize Wirtinger presentations of knots. WLOG presentations, where the underlying graph is a tree are of central importance in view of Whitehead's Asphericity Conjecture. We present a class of aspherical world labeled oriented graphs. This class can be used to produce highly non-injective aspherical labeled oriented trees and also aspherical cyclically presented groups.

math.GT↗

arXiv2009

Exotic relation modules and homotopy types for certain 1-relator groups

Using stably free non-free relation modules we construct an infinite collection of 2-dimensional homotopy types, each of Euler-characteristic one and with trefoil fundamental group. This provides an affirmative answer to a question asked by Berridge and Dunwoody [J. London Math. Soc. 19 (1979) 433-436]. We also give new examples of exotic relation modules. We show that the relation module associated with the generating set x, y^4 for the Baumslag-Solitar group is stably free non-free of rank one.

math.GR↗