Complexity computation for compact 3-manifolds via crystallizations and Heegaard diagrams (Q439303)

Matveev complexity assigns a non-negative integer \(c(M)\) to each compact, connected 3--manifold \(M\), such that there are only finitely many manifolds with any given complexity. This complexity is also additive under connected sum. The paper under review considers two other complexity measures on compact 3--manifolds. The modified Heegaard complexity \(c_{HM}(M)\) is defined in terms of the number of intersection points of curves in Heegaard diagrams for \(M\). It was known that this gives an upper bound on \(c(M)\) provided \(M\) is orientable. It is noted that the proof of this by \textit{A. Cattabriga, M. Mulazzani} and \textit{A. Vesnin} [J. Korean Math. Soc. 47, 585--599 (2010; Zbl 1198.57014)] also holds in the non-orientable case. The Gem--Matveev complexity \(c'(M)\), which is defined only when \(M\) is closed, is defined in terms of the number of vertices in a crystallization of \(M\). A crystallization of \(M\) is a 4--coloured graph that encodes a particular construction of \(M\) using tetrahedra. This paper first recalls the definitions of \(c(M)\), \(c_{HM}(M)\) and \(c'(M)\). Next it is proved that if \(M\) is a closed connected 3--manifold then \(c_{HM}(M)=c'(M)\). Finally, the authors conjecture that \(c(M)=c_{HM}(M)=c'(M)\) for any closed, connected 3--manifold \(M\).