Gauss diagrams, unknotting numbers and trivializing numbers of spatial graphs (Q2405101)

This paper defines and analyzes several means of measuring knotting in spatial graphs. The featured measures fall into two categories -- unknotting numbers and trivializing numbers. For a spatial graph $G$, the authors review the definitions of unknotting number and $\Gamma$-unknotting number of $G$, as defined in [\textit{A. Kawauchi}, Prog. Theor. Phys., Suppl. 191, 225--234 (2011; Zbl 1411.57015)]. They introduce the notion of a based spatial graph and based versions of the unknotting and $\Gamma$-unknotting numbers. \par The trivializing numbers are inspired by the trivializing numbers for knots developed by [\textit{A. Henrich} et al., J. Knot Theory Ramifications 20, No. 4, 625--650 (2011; Zbl 1250.57009)], and for spatial graphs whose underlying graphs are planar by [\textit{R. Hanaki}, Osaka J. Math 47, No. 3, 863--883 (2010; Zbl 1219.57006)]. The authors extend these definitions of trivializing numbers to arbitrary spatial graphs and introduce based versions as well. In the process of defining the unknotting and trivializing numbers, the authors introduce and use Gauss diagrams for spatial graphs. \par The main result consists of inequalities relating the $\Gamma$-unknotting number, $u^{\Gamma}(G)$, of a spatial graph $G$, and the $\Gamma$-trivializing number, $tr^{\Gamma}(G)$, of $G$: \[ u^{\Gamma}(G)\leq \frac{tr^{\Gamma}(G)}{2}. \] The authors also establish a based version of this inequality: \[ u_b^{\Gamma}(G)\leq \frac{tr_b^{\Gamma}(G)}{2}. \] As an application of these inequalities, the authors obtain an upper bound on the sum of unknotting numbers for components of a spatial handcuff graph. In particular, they show that if $K_1$ and $K_2$ are the constituent knots in a spatial handcuff graph $G$, then \[ u(K_1\cup K_2)+u(K_1)+u(K_2)\leq u^{\Gamma}(G)\leq \frac{tr^{\Gamma}(G)}{2} \] where $u(K_1)$ and $u(K_2)$ are the unknotting numbers of $K_1$ and $K_2$, respectively, and $u(K_1\cup K_2)$ is the unlinking number of the link $K_1\cup K_2$.