Infinitely-ended hyperbolic groups with homeomorphic Gromov boundaries. (Q2260300)

The main result of this paper is that if \(G_1\) and \(G_2\) are hyperbolic groups then the boundary \(\partial(G_1*G_2)\) of the free product is determined (as a topological space) by the individual boundaries \(\partial G_1,\partial G_2\). In fact, it is shown more generally that the boundary of a graph of groups with hyperbolic vertex groups and finite edge groups is determined by the boundaries of the vertex groups under mild assumptions. The proof uses a ``tree of Cayley graphs'' which is essentially the Bass-Serre tree with the vertices blown up to the Cayley graphs of their stabilizers. The boundary of the tree of Cayley graphs is homeomorphic to the boundary of the free product. To prove the main result it therefore suffices to show the following: if \(G_1\) and \(G_1'\) and \(G_2\) and \(G_2'\) have homeomorphic boundaries then the trees of Cayley graphs of \(G_1*G_2\) and of \(G_1'*G_2'\) have homeomorphic boundaries. This is what the authors prove. To deduce the general statement they invoke a result by \textit{P. Papasoglu} and \textit{K. Whyte} [Comment. Math. Helv. 77, No. 1, 133-144 (2002; Zbl 1010.20026)].