Realization of a graph as the Reeb graph of a Morse function on a manifold (Q1741801)

The author studies the problem of realization of a given finite graph as the Reeb graph \(\mathcal{R}(f)\) of a smooth function \(f : M \rightarrow \mathbb{R}\) with finitely many critical points, where \(M\) is a closed manifold. He proves the following interesting result: For every \(n\geq 2\) and for every graph \(\Gamma\) admitting the so-called good orientation there exist an \(n\)-manifold \(M\) and a Morse function \(f : M \rightarrow \mathbb{R}\) such that its Reeb graph \(\mathcal{R}(f)\) is isomorphic to \(\Gamma\) (Theorem 4.3). This property extends the previous results of \textit{V. V. Sharko} [Methods Funct. Anal. Topol. 12, No. 4, 389--396 (2006; Zbl 1114.57034)] and \textit{Y. Masumoto} and \textit{O. Saeki} [Kyushu J. Math. 65, No. 1, 75--84 (2011; Zbl 1277.58022)]. The paper is organized into five sections as follow: Introduction, Basic properties of Reeb graphs, Number of cycles in Reeb graphs, Realization by a Morse function, Solution of the main problem for surfaces.