Double sequences of low complexity (Q5939704)

\textit{M. Morse} and \textit{G. A. Hedlund} proved that a sequence containing at most \(n\) blocks of length \(n\) for some \(n\) must be periodic from some point on [Am. J. Math. 60, 815--866 (1938; Zbl 0019.33502)]. They also introduced Sturmian sequences [see ibid. 62, 1--42 (1940; Zbl 0022.34003)]: these are the sequences with exactly \(n+1\) blocks of length \(n\) for each \(n\geq 1\). The corresponding thresholds and the ``right'' notion of Sturmian sequences in dimension \(\geq 2\) are not really known yet. In the paper under review the authors study the 2D sequences that have \(mn+n\) rectangular blocks of size \((m,n)\) and that are uniformly recurrent. They show that these sequences code the \(\mathbb Z^2\)-action defined by two irrational rotations on \(\mathbb R/\mathbb Z\). Sturmian sequences occur in the proof. In passing the authors study the 2D sequences that contain \(m+n\) blocks of size \((m,n)\). Please note that Reference [4] has appeared in Discrete Math. with a slightly modified title (see Zbl 0970.68124), that Reference [10] has appeared (see Zbl 1001.68093), that Reference [15] has appeared (see Zbl 1005.68118), and that Reference [17] has also appeared (see Zbl 0983.68062).