The diameter of random Belyĭ surfaces (Q2059704)

In the paper [J. Differ. Geom. 68, No. 1, 121--157 (2004; Zbl 1095.30037)], \textit{R. Brooks} and \textit{E. Makover} gave a construction of ``random Riemann surfaces'' by associating with each oriented 3-regular graph with an orientation a Riemann surface equipped with an ideal hyperbolic triangulation (with shear zero along the edges), and then compactifying by adding a point to each cusp. Starting with \(2n\) ideal triangles, the random hyperbolic surfaces obtained are of genus roughly \(n/2\). In the paper under review, the authors determine the asymptotic growth rate of the diameter of such random hyperbolic surfaces, namely, this diameter is asymptotic to \(2 \log n\) as \(n\to\infty\). The proof combines combinatorics, probability theory and hyperbolic geometry, and is highly interesting.