Faithful linear representations and residual finiteness of some products of cyclics with one relation (Q1814404)

A group of the form \(G = \langle a_ 1, \dots, a_ n \mid a^{e_ 1}_ 1 = \dots = a^{e_ n}_ n = R^ m(a_ 1,\dots, a_ n) = 1\rangle\), where \(n \geq 2\), \(m \geq 2\), \(e_ i = 0\) or \(e_ i \geq 2\) for all \(i\), and \(R(a_ 1,\dots, a_ n)\) is a cyclically reduced word in the free generators \(a_ 1, \dots, a_ n\), properly containing them all, is called a product of cyclics with one relation. In [Proc. Am. Math. Soc. 102, 249-254 (1988; Zbl 0653.20029)] \textit{B. Fine, J. Howie} and the author proved that the Freiheitssatz holds for \(G\); i.e., the subgroup generated by the elements \(a_ 1, \dots, a_{n-1}\) is a free product of cyclics. The proof uses a representation of \(G\) in \(\text{PSL}(2,\mathbb{C})\). If this representation is faithful, then \(G\) is residually finite by Mal'tsev's theorem. In general, a faithful representation \(\rho : G \to \text{PSL}(2,\mathbb{C})\) does not exist. It would be interesting, in this connection, to find conditions on the group \(G\) that would guarantee its faithful representability in \(\text{PSL}(2,\mathbb{C})\). In the present article, we prove the following partial result. Theorem. Let \(G = \langle a_ 1,\dots, a_ n \mid a^{e_ 1}_ 1 = \dots = a^{e_ n}_ n = (U(a_ 1,\dots, a_ p) \cdot V(a_{p+1}, \dots, a_ n))^ m = 1\rangle\), where \(m \geq 2\), \(n \geq 3\), \(1 \leq p \leq n-2\), \(e_ i = 0\) or \(e_ i \geq 2\) for \(i = 1,\dots,n\), \(U(a_ 1,\dots, a_ p)\) is a nontrivial word in the free generators \(a_ 1,\dots, a_ p\), and \(V(a_{p+1}, \dots, a_ n)\) of finite order, and not a proper power. Then \(G\) admits a faithful representation in \(\text{PSL}(2,\mathbb{C})\), and, hence, is residually finite. It follows from this theorem that the fundamental groups of certain 3-manifolds admit faithful representations in \(\text{PSL}(2,\mathbb{C})\).