Unknotting annuli and handlebody-knot symmetry (Q2052569)

In the present paper, a handlebody-knot is always a handlebody-knot of genus 2, i.e. a handlebody of genus 2 embedded in the 3-sphere; the symmetry group of a handlebody-knot \(\mathrm{HK}\) is the mapping class group of the pair \((\mathbb S^3, \mathrm{HK})\). By Thurston's hyperbolization theorem, a handlebody-knot is hyperbolic (i.e. its complement has a complete hyperbolic structure with totally geodesic boundary) if and only if the complement is irreducible, atoroidal and acylindrical; then, by Mostow's rigidity theorem, its symmetry group is finite and can be realized by isometries. \textit{K. Funayoshi} and \textit{Y. Koda} [Q. J. Math. 71, No. 1, 175--196 (2020; Zbl 1437.57028)] showed that the symmetry group is finite also for atoroidal but cylindrical handlebody-knots. The author notes that, contrary to the case of classical knots (i.e. handlebody knots of genus 1), less is known about the structure of these finite symmetry groups. ``The present work investigates the structure of symmetry groups of \textit{cylindrical} handlebody-knots.'' \textit{Y. Koda} et al. [Trans. Am. Math. Soc. 367, No. 4, 2875--2904 (2015; Zbl 1310.57015)] gave a classification into four types of the essential annuli in the exterior of an irreducible atoroidal handlebody-knot. ``The present paper investigates the topology of cylindrical handlebody-knots of genus two that admit an unknotting annulus; we show that the symmetry group is trivial if the unknotting annulus is unique and of type 2.'' Here an annulus in the complement of a handlebody-knot is \textit{unknotting} if, adjoining a regular neighborhood of the annulus to the handlebody-knot, the result is a trivial handlebody-knot (i.e. induces a genus two Heegaard splitting of \(\mathbb S^3\)).