\(k\)-normal surfaces (Q2389160)

A normal surface in a triangulated 3-manifold is a surface intersecting each tetrahedron in triangles and quadrilaterals. A normal surface is called trivial if it is made only of triangles. More generaly, a \(k\)-normal surface in a triangulated 3-manifold is a surface intersecting each tetrahedron in polygons, having consecutive vertices in distinct edges of the tetrahedron, and incident to each such edge at most \(k\) times. A normal surface is just 1-normal. The authors treat the question of the existence of \(k\)-normal surfaces for a given type of surface, given a class of 3-manifolds, or the existence of normal and \(k\)-normal surfaces depending on triangulations. Related to \(S^2\) the obtained result says: Let \(M\) be a closed irreducible or bounded hyperbolic 3-manifold, different from \(S^3\), \(\mathbb RP^3\) and \(L_{3,1}\). A minimal triangulation of \(M\) does not contain any non-trivial \(k\)-normal sphere for all \(k\). For compact 3-manifolds and general surfaces the result is: Every compact 3-manifold has only finitely many triangulations without non-trivial normal surfaces. But for a closed 3-manifold it holds: Every triangulation of any closed manifold except for the minimal triangulation of the lens space \(L_{5,2}\) contains a non-trivial normal surface. In the case of triangulated lens spaces the number of normal isotopy classes of normal projective planes, spheres, tori and Klein bottles is calculated. In proving mentioned and non mentioned results the authors use the \(t\)-invariant of Turaev-Viro and spine techniques.