The structure of branching in Anosov flows of 3-manifolds (Q1392747)

Summary: A curvilinear \(d\)-web \(W = (F_1,\dots,F_d)\) is a configuration of \(d\) curvilinear foliations \(F_i\) on a surface. When \(d=3\), Bott connections of the normal bundles of \(F_i\) extend naturally to equal affine connection, which is called Chern connection. For \(3<d\), this is the case if and only if the modulus of tangents to the leaves of \(F_i\) at a point is constant. A \(d\)-web is associative if the modulus is constant and weakly associative if Chern connections of all 3-subwebs have equal curvature form. We give a geometric interpretation of the curvature form in terms of fake billiard in \S 2, and prove that a weakly associative \(d\)-web is associative if Chern connections of triples of the members are non flat, and then the foliations are defined by members of a pencil (projective linear family of dim 1) of 1-forms. This result completes the classification of weakly associative 4-webs initiated by Poincaré, Mayrhofer and Reidemeister for the flat case. In \S 4, we generalize the result for \(n+2\)-webs of \(n\)-spaces. For quasigeodesic flows on hyperbolic 3-manifolds cf. \textit{S. Fenley} and \textit{L. Mosher}, Topology 40, 503-537 (2001; Zbl 0990.53040).