The automorphism group of the free group of rank 2 is a \(\text{CAT}(0)\) group. (Q1958000)

The authors define a finitely generated group \(G\) to be a \(\text{CAT}(0)\) group if \(G\) acts cocompactly and properly discontinuously by isometries on a \(\text{CAT}(0)\) metric space \(X\). Such an action is called geometric. The main resut of the paper is that \(\Aut(F_2)\) is a \(\text{CAT}(0)\) group, where \(F_2\) is the free group on 2 generators. To prove this, the authors use the following: 1) \(\Aut(F_2)\) is isomorphic to \(\Aut(B_4)\), where \(B_4\) is the braid group on 4 generators. 2) \(\text{Inn}(B_4)\) has index two in \(\Aut(B_4)\). 3) A result due to \textit{T. Brady} [Mich. Math. J. 47, No. 2, 313-324 (2000; Zbl 0996.20022)] that shows that \(B_4\) acts faithfully and geometrically on a \(\text{CAT}(0)\) 3-complex. It follows from the above facts that \(\text{Inn}(B_4)\) acts faithfully and geometrically on a \(\text{CAT}(0)\) 2-complex \(X_0\). The authors then exhibit an extra isometry of \(X_0\) which extends the faithful geometric action of \(\text{Inn}(B_4)\) to a faithful geometric action of \(\Aut(B_4)\). The last step constitutes the bulk of the paper.