Geometry and rank of fibered hyperbolic 3-manifolds (Q1007209)

The author considers closed, hyperbolic 3-manifolds \(M\) that fiber over the circle \(S^1\) with fiber \(\Sigma_g\), where \(\Sigma_g\) denotes the closed orientable surface of genus \(g\). One would expect that the fundamental group \(\pi_1(M)\) of \(M\) should have rank \(2n+ 1\), that is, \(2n\) generators required for the surface subgroup and an additional generator, the \((2n+1)\)st, required for the circle direction. However, there are exceptions where the rank is \(\leq 2n\). The author shows that the exceptions are few. More precisely, if \(\Sigma_g\) and \(\varepsilon> 0\) are fixed, then among the infinitely many such manifolds \(M\) with injectivity radius \(\geq\varepsilon\), only finitely many have \(\text{rank}(\pi_1(M))\leq 2n\). The proof involves algebraic and geometric convergence of Kleinian groups and the convex cores of the associated 3-manifolds. The major step bounds the diameter of the manifold \(M\) by bounding the waist size or girth of \(M\). The theorem follows since there are only finitely many closed hyperbolic manifolds with diameter bounded by a fixed value [\textit{R. Young}, Geom. Dedicata 116, 61--65 (2005; Zbl 1089.57015)]. The result generalizes and strengthens a result of \textit{J. Souto} [in: Boileau, Michel (ed.) et al., The Zieschang Gedenkschrift. Coventry: Geometry \& Topology Publications. Geometry and Topology Monographs 14, 505--518 (2008; Zbl 1144.57017)].