arXiv subjects
Publications and source records attributed to Mladen Bestvina.
We give a lower bound to the dimension of a contractible manifold on which a given group can act properly discontinuously. In particular, we show that the $n$-fold product of nonabelian free groups cannot act properly discontinuously on $\R^{2n-1}$.
The Tits alternative for Out(F_n) is reduced to the case where all elements in the subgroup under consideration grow polynomially.
Artin groups of finite type are not as well understood as braid groups. This is due to the additional geometric properties of braid groups coming from their close connection to mapping class groups. For each Artin group of finite type, we construct a space (simplicial complex) analogous to Teichmueller space that satisfies a weak nonpositive curvature condition and also a space "at infinity" analogous to the space of projective measured laminations. Using these constructs, we deduce several group-theoretic properties of Artin groups of finite type that are well-known in the case of braid groups.
The proof of the Tits alternative for $Out(F_n)$ is completed. The main tool is a Kolchin type theorem, proved in this paper. It states that a finitely generated subgroup of $Out(F_n)$ consisting of unipotent automorphisms can be conjugated into an upper-triangular subgroup (this is interpreted via train-tracks).
A companion result of the the Tits alternative for $Out(F_n)$ is proved: Every solvable subgroup of $Out(F_n)$ is finitely generated and virtually abelian.
This is a survey of the theory of real trees and their applications.