Deformations of functions on surfaces by isotopic to the identity diffeomorphisms (Q2215639)

Let \(M\) be a smooth compact not necessarily connected surface, \(P\) either the real line \(\mathbb{R}\) or the circle \(S^{1}\), \(f: M\to P\) a smooth map. A diffeomorphism \(h:M\to M\) is said to be \textit{\(f\)-preserving} whenever \(f\circ h = f\), which is equivalent to the assumption that \(h\) leaves invariant each \textit{level-set}, \(f^{-1}(c)\), \(c\in P\), of \(f\). Denote by \(\mathcal{F}(M,P)\) the subspace of \(C^{\infty}(M,P)\) consisting of maps \(f\) satisfying two axioms: \textbf{Axiom(B).} The map \(f\) takes a constant value at each connected component of \(\partial M\) and has no critical points in \(\partial M\). \textbf{Axiom(L).} For every critical point \(z\) of \(f\), the germ of \(f\) at \(z\) is smoothly equivalent to a germ at \(0\in\mathbb{R}^2\) of some non-zero homogeneous polynomial \(f_{z}:\mathbb{R}^2\to\mathbb{R}\) without multiple factors. Denote by \(\mathcal{D}(M)\) the group of all \(C^{\infty}\) diffeomorphisms of \(M\) endowed with the \(C^{\infty}\)-topology, and let \(\mathcal{D}_{\text{id}}(M)\) be its identity path component, i.e. it consists of \(h\in\mathcal{D}(M)\) isotopic to \(id_{M}\). Let also \(\mathcal{S}(f)\) be the group of all \(f\)-preserving diffeomorphisms, \(\mathcal{S}'(f) = \mathcal{S}(f)\cap\mathcal{D}_{\text{id}}(M)\), and \(\mathcal{S}_{\text{id}}(f)\) be the identity path component of \(\mathcal{S}(f)\) being also the identity path component of \(\mathcal{S}'(f)\). The paper under review is devoted to a study of the group of \(f\)-preserving diffeomorphisms up to \(f\)-preserving isotopies for all \(f\in \mathcal{F}(M,P)\). More precisely, the author describes the algebraic structure of the homotopy groups \(\pi_{0}\mathcal{S}'(f)\cong\mathcal{S}'(f)/\mathcal{S}_{\text{id}}(f)\) being analogues of the mapping class group \(\pi_{0}\mathcal{D}(m)\cong\mathcal{D}(M)/\mathcal{D}_{\text{id}}(M)\) for isotropic to the identity \(f\)-preserving diffeomorphisms. For a closed subset \(V\subset M\) and a smooth map \(f:M\to P\), denote by \(\mathcal{S}(f,V)\) the group of diffeomorphisms \(h\) of \(M\) preserving \(f\) and fixed on \(V\). Let also \(\mathcal{S}'(f,V)\) be its subgroup consisting of diffeomorphisms isotopic relatively \(V\) to the identity map id\(_{M}\) via isotopies that are not necessarily \(f\)-preserving. In the paper under review it is shown that for certain subsets \(V\) ``adapted'' in some sense with \(f\), the groups \(\pi_{0}\mathcal{S}'(f,V)\) are solvable and Bieberbach. The paper is rather long and technical.