The volume and Chern-Simons invariant of a Dehn-filled manifold (Q1731347)

For a compact oriented $3$-manifold $N$ and a representation $\rho:\pi_1(N)\to \mathrm{PSL}(2,\mathbb{C})$, there is a complex volume $\text{Vol}_{\mathbb{C}}(\rho)\in \mathbb{C}/i\pi^2\mathbb{Z}$ associated to the pair $(N,\rho)$. The real part of $\text{Vol}_{\mathbb{C}}(\rho)$ is the representation volume of $M$ associated to $\rho$, and the imaginary part is the corresponding Chern-Simons invariant. \par Let $N$ be a compact oriented $3$-manifold with nonempty boundary consisting of tori. For a given ideal triangulation of $N$, the author gives a combinatorial formula for computing the complex volume $\text{Vol}_{\mathbb{C}}(\rho)$. This formula further gives a combinatorial method to compute the complex volume of a $\mathrm{PSL}(2,\mathbb{C})$-representation of a closed $3$-manifold obtained by Dehn filling. \par This work generalizes previous work of \textit{C. K. Zickert} [Duke Math. J. 150, No. 3, 489--532 (2009; Zbl 1246.58019)], where a combinatorial formula for $\text{Vol}_{\mathbb{C}}(\rho)$ is given in the case that $\rho$ is boundary parabolic, i.e. the restriction of $\rho$ to the fundamental group of each boundary component of $N$ has parabolic image. \par Let $N$ be a compact oriented $3$-manifold with nonempty boundary consisting of tori, and equipped with an ideal trianguation. Then each tetrahedron in the ideal triangulation of $N$ corresponds to a truncated tetrahedron, and the union of these truncated tetrahedra gives a genuine polyhedral decomposition of $N$. \par For a (possibly non-boundary parabolic) representation $\rho:\pi_1(N)\to \mathrm{PSL}(2,\mathbb{C})$, its restrictions to the fundamental groups of the boundary components of $N$ give a (non-unique) cocycle $\sigma\in Z^1(\partial N;\mathbb{C}^{\times})$. By generalizing Zickert's Ptolemy equation, the author uses the data of $\sigma$ to define the $\sigma$-deformed Ptolemy equation, and each edge $l$ in the ideal trianguation of $N$ corresponds to one unknown $c(l)$ of the equation. The solution of the $\sigma$-deformed Ptolemy equation is called the deformed Ptolemy variety, and it can be further used to recover the representation $\rho$, up to conjugacy. \par By properly choosing the logarithm of $\sigma$ and $c(l)$ (take a flattening), these data can be used to compute the shape parameter (cross-ratio) of the image of each ideal tetrahedron of $N$, under the developing map associated to $\rho$. These shape parameters can be further used to compute the complex volume $\text{Vol}_{\mathbb{C}}(\rho)$ associated to $\rho$. Neumann's formula of complex volume in [\textit{W. D. Neumann}, Geom. Topol. 8, 413--474 (2004; Zbl 1053.57010)] is an important ingredient here to derive the combinatorial formula.