Searcharxiv⌕ Search

arXiv subjects

Marco Golla

Publications and source records attributed to Marco Golla.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
arXiv2026

Topological line arrangements with high multiplicities

We investigate constraints on the existence of topological and smooth realisations of combinatorial line arrangements and $(n_k)$-configurations in the complex projective plane. By replacing complex lines with locally-flatly or smoothly embedded 2-spheres, we explore the extent to which classical geometric results, such as Hirzebruch's inequality, persist in the topological or smooth category. We introduce two classes of special line arrangements that we call odd and even. We provide constraints for any smoothly realised, non-trivial, odd arrangement via Furuta's 10/8-Theorem. By looking at branched double covers and using the G-signature theorem, we study topologically realised, non-trivial, even arrangement. Finally, we establish a new lower bound for $(n_k)$-configurations, showing that for any topologically realised configuration we have $n \geq k^2-5$, which implies the non-existence of topological realisations for finite projective planes.

math.GT↗
arXiv2025

Surfaces in 4-manifolds and complex curves

These are lecture notes from a mini-course taught at Winterbraids XIII (Montpellier, 2024). The main character of these notes are curves in the complex projective plane, viewed from a topological perspective.

math.GT↗
arXiv2025

The Farey tree and embeddings of lens spaces and rational balls in $\mathbb{CP}^2$

Motivated by a conjecture of Koll\'ar, we study embeddings of multiple rational homology balls in $\mathbb{CP}^2$. To each node of the Farey tree, we associate such an embedding of three rational homology balls with lens space boundary, extending earlier work of the second author and of Lisca and Parma, using a recursive Kirby calculus argument. We also give further explicit constructions of embeddings of triples of rational homology balls into homotopy $\mathbb{CP}^2$s.

math.GT↗
arXiv2024

On line arrangements with odd multiplicities

We give restrictions on the weak combinatorics of line arrangements with singular points of odd multiplicity using topological arguments on locally-flat spheres in 4-manifolds. As a corollary, we show that there is no line arrangement comprising 13 lines and with only triple points.

math.GT↗
arXiv2024

Splitting links by integer homology spheres

For every $n \ge 3$, we construct 2-component links in $S^{n+1}$ that are a split by an integer homology $n$-sphere, but not by $S^n$. In the special case $n=3$, i.e. that of 2-links in $S^4$, we produce an infinite family of links $L_\ell$ and of integer homology spheres $Y_\ell$ such that the link $L_\ell$ is (topologically or smoothly) split by $Y_\ell$ and by no other integer homology sphere in the family.

math.GT↗
arXiv2023

The signature of geometrically decomposable aspherical 4-manifolds

We construct examples of geometrically decomposable aspherical 4-manifolds with non-zero signature. We show that all such 4-manifolds satisfy the inequality (of Bogomolov--Miyaoka--Yau type) $\chi\geq 3|\sigma|$. We also construct examples attaining the equality that are non-geometric and have non-zero signature. Finally, we prove that for higher graph 4-manifolds, with complex-hyperbolic vertices, the strict inequality always holds. Moreover, we construct infinitely many examples of higher graph 4-manifolds with non-zero signature and prove that the inequality is strict and sharp in this class.

math.DG↗
arXiv2023

Multisections of higher-dimensional manifolds

Generalizing Heegaard splittings of 3-manifolds and trisections of 4-manifolds, we consider multisections of higher-dimensional smooth (or PL) closed orientable manifolds, namely decompositions into 1-handlebodies whose subcollections intersect along 1-handlebodies, with global intersection a closed surface. With such a multisection one can associate a diagram. We prove that a multisection diagram determines a unique PL-manifold in all dimensions and a unique smooth manifold up to dimension 6. Further, we show that any closed orientable smooth 5-manifold admits a multisection.

math.GT↗
arXiv2021

Rational cuspidal curves and symplectic fillings

A symplectic rational cuspidal curve with positive self-intersection number admits a concave neighborhood, and thus a corresponding contact manifold on the boundary. In this article, we study symplectic fillings of such contact manifolds, providing a complementary perspective to our earlier article on symplectic isotopy classes of rational cuspidal curves. We explore aspects of these symplectic fillings through Stein handlebodies and rational blow-downs. We give examples of such contact manifolds which are identifiable as links of normal surface singularities, other examples which admit no symplectic fillings, and further examples where the fillings can be fully classified.

math.GT↗
arXiv2020

3-manifolds that bound no definite 4-manifold

We produce a rational homology 3-sphere that does not smoothly bound either a positive or negative definite 4-manifold. Such a 3-manifold necessarily cannot be rational homology cobordant to a Seifert fibered space or any 3-manifold obtained by Dehn surgery on a knot. The proof requires an analysis of short characteristic covectors in bimodular lattices.

math.GT↗
arXiv2020

Surgeries on torus knots, rational balls, and cabling

We classify which positive integral surgeries on positive torus knots bound rational homology balls. Additionally, for a given knot K we consider which cables K(p,q) admit integral surgeries that bound rational homology balls. For such cables, let S(K) be the set of corresponding rational numbers q/p. We show that S(K) is bounded for each K. Moreover, if n-surgery on K bounds a rational homology ball then n is an accumulation point for S(K).

math.GT↗
arXiv2020

Non-orientable slice surfaces and inscribed rectangles

We discuss differences between genera of smooth and locally-flat non-orientable surfaces in the 4-ball with boundary a given torus knot or 2-bridge knot. In particular, we establish that a result by Batson on the smooth non-orientable 4-genus of torus knots does not hold in the locally-flat category. We further show that certain families of torus knots are not the boundary of an embedded M\"obius band in the 4-ball and other 4-manifolds. Our investigation of non-orientable surfaces with boundary a given torus knot is motivated by our approach to unify the proof of the existence of inscribed squares and of inscribed rectangles with aspect ratio $\sqrt3$ in Jordan curves with a regularity condition. This generalizes a result by Hugelmeyer for smooth Jordan curves.

math.GT↗
arXiv2020

Symplectic hats

We study relative symplectic cobordisms between contact submanifolds, and in particular relative symplectic cobordisms to the empty set, that we call hats. While we make some observations in higher dimensions, we focus on the case of transverse knots in the standard 3-sphere, and hats in blow-ups of the (punctured) complex projective planes. We apply the construction to give constraints on the algebraic topology of fillings of double covers of the 3-sphere branched over certain transverse quasipositive knots.

math.GT↗
arXiv2019

The symplectic isotopy problem for rational cuspidal curves

We define a suitably tame class of singular symplectic curves in 4-manifolds, namely those whose singularities are modeled on complex curve singularities. We study the corresponding symplectic isotopy problem, with a focus on rational curves with irreducible singularities (rational cuspidal curves) in the complex projective plane. We prove that every such curve is isotopic to a complex curve in degrees up to 5, and for curves with one singularity whose link is a torus knot. Classification results of symplectic isotopy classes rely on pseudo-holomorphic curves together with a symplectic version of birational geometry of log pairs and techniques from 4-dimensional topology.

math.GT↗
arXiv2018

On definite lattices bounded by integer surgeries along knots with slice genus at most 2

We classify the positive definite intersection forms that arise from smooth 4-manifolds with torsion-free homology bounded by positive integer surgeries on the right-handed trefoil. A similar, slightly less complete classification is given for the (2,5)-torus knot, and analogous results are obtained for integer surgeries on knots of slice genus at most two. The proofs use input from Yang--Mills instanton gauge theory and Heegaard Floer correction terms.

math.GT↗
arXiv2018

Heegaard Floer homology and concordance bounds on the Thurston norm

We prove that twisted correction terms in Heegaard Floer homology provide lower bounds on the Thurston norm of certain cohomology classes determined by the strong concordance class of a 2-component link $L$ in $S^3$. We then specialise this procedure to knots in $S^2\times S^1$, and obtain a lower bound on their geometric winding number. Furthermore we produce an obstruction for a knot in $S^3$ to have untwisting number 1. We then provide an infinite family of null-homologous knots with increasing geometric winding number, on which the bound is sharp.

math.GT↗