Hyperbolic 3-manifolds singular along knots (Q1809555)

This is a survey on the deformation theory of hyperbolic cone-manifolds, i.e. of 3-manifolds with a hyperbolic metric which becomes singular, with an angle different from \(2\pi\), around a knot in the manifold (the singular set of the cone manifold). The local and global deformation theory of such cone manifolds is discussed, in particular a local rigidity theorem due to Hodgson and Kerckhoff and its consequence that, if a hyperbolic cone manifold has cone angle \(\leq 2\pi\) then there exists a unique small angle changing deformation. The global theory asks for the possible degenerations of hyperbolic cone manifolds and is important also for the proof of the orbifold geometrization theorem. Central here is the concept of Hausdorff-Gromov convergence of pointed metric spaces. The theorem from a recent paper of the author is discussed that a compact hyperbolic cone manifold with cone angle \(\leq 2\pi\) can be continuously deformed to the complete hyperbolic structure which exists on the complement of the singular set. As a consequence, such cone manifolds which have the same topological type and the same cone angle are isometric (global rigidity, as in the case of finite-volume complete hyperbolic manifolds). For a related survey on deformations of hyperbolic cone manifolds see also a paper by \textit{S. P. Kerckhoff} [in: Topology and Teichmüller spaces. Proceedings of the 37th Taniguchi symposium, Katinkulta, Finland, July, 24--28, 1995. Singapore: World Scientific. 101--114 (1996; Zbl 0927.57011)].