On the intersection of subgroups of a free group (Q1207419)

Let \(U\) and \(V\) be subgroups, of ranks \(u\) and \(v\), respectively, of a free group. The so-called Hanna Neumann Conjecture says that the rank minus one of the intersection \(U\cap V\) is no greater than \((u - 1)\cdot (v - 1)\). This has been discussed by many authors since it was first raised [as a hope rather than a conjecture] by \textit{Hanna Neumann} [Publ. Math. 4, 186-189 (1956) and 5, 128 (1957; Zbl 0078.014)= Selected Works of B. H. Neumann and Hanna Neumann (1988; Zbl 0655.20001), Vol. III, 622- 626]. This has been strengthened by \textit{Walter D. Neumann} [3rd. Int. Conf. Theory Groups Rel. Top., Canberra/Aust. 1989, Lect. Notes Math. 1456, 161-170 (1990; Zbl 0722.20016)] to the question if the corresponding inequality still holds if the rank minus one of the intersection is replaced by the sum of the ranks minus one of the nontrivial intersections \(U\cap x^{-1}\cdot V\cdot x\). The author proves both the original Hanna Neumann Conjecture (Theorem 1) and the strengthened one (Theorem \(2'\)) in the case that one of the subgroups, say \(V\), has rank 2. The proof first translates the group-theoretical situation into a graph-theoretical one [as has been done by several of the earlier authors], and then proceeds to examine the resulting graphs. This leads to a final theorem (Theorem 6), which gives a graph- theoretical sufficient condition on a subgroup \(V\) of a free group for the strengthened Hanna Neumann Conjecture to hold for arbitrary nontrivial subgroups \(U\) and \(V\).