An estimate for hexagonal circle packings (Q1175266)

Let \(P\) be a circle packing in the complex plane \(\mathbb{C}\), i.e., a collection of circles in \(\mathbb{C}\) with disjoint interiors, and let \(c_ 0\) be a circle of \(P\). Suppose that for some positive integer \(n\geq 2\), the \(n\) generations \(P_ n\) of \(P\) about \(c_ 0\) (defined successively by \(P_ 0=\{c_ 0\}\), \(P_ k=\{c\in P; c\in P_{k-1}\) or \(c\) is tangent to some circle of \(P_{k-1}\}\), \(k\geq 1\)) is combinatorially equivalent to the \(n\) generations \(H_ n\) of a regular hexagonal circle packing about one of its circles. Then the ratio of radii of any two circles of \(P\) tangent to \(c_ 0\) is bounded by \(1+s_ n\), where \(s_ 2,s_ 3,\dots\) is some decreasing sequence of positive numbers. We will denote by \(s_ n\) the smallest possible constant with this property. In ibid. 26, 349-360 (1987; Zbl 0694.30006), \textit{B. Rodin} and \textit{D. Sullivan} showed that any circle packing which is combinatorially equivalent to an infinite regular hexagonal circle packing is also regular hexagonal, and as a consequence, \(s_ n\) converges to 0. They conjectured that \(s_ n\leq C/n\) for some constant \(C\). In this paper, we will prove this conjecture. This estimate for \(s_ n\) is best possible as (we will see later) \(s_ n\geq 4/n\). One may use our result to estimate the rate of convergence of the circle packing solutions \(f_{\varepsilon}\) to the Riemann Mapping Theorem given in the paper, cited above, where \(\varepsilon\) is the size of the preimage circles, and of the approximating solutions \(f_{\delta}\) to the Beltrami equations constructed by the author in Trans. Am. Math. Soc. 322, No. 2, 657-670 (1990; Zbl 0714.30012). This shows that these solutions are constructive. Moreover, for the circle packing solutions \(f_{\varepsilon}\) of Rodin and Sullivan [loc. cit.], we may combine with [\textit{B. Rodin}, J. Differ. Geom. 30, No. 2, 539-554 (1989; Zbl 0646.30014), Theorems 5 and 8] to conclude that the rate of convergence on compact subsets is of order at most \(\varepsilon^{\alpha/8}\) for any fixed \(\alpha<1\), and their derivatives converge in \(L^{\infty}\) on compact subsets.