Immediate and virtual basins of Newton's method for entire functions. (Q2488753)

Let \(f\) be a nonlinear entire function, and let \(N_f\) denote the associated Newton function, that is \(N_f(z)=z-f(z)/f'(z)\). Furthermore, denote by \(N_f^n\) the \(n\)-iterate of \(N_f\). If \(\zeta\) is a zero of \(f\), then \(\zeta\) is an attracting fixed point of \(N_f\), and the basin of attraction of \(\zeta\) is defined as the open set \(U_\zeta\) such that for every \(z \in U_\zeta\) the sequence \((N_f^n(z))_{n \in \mathbb{N}}\) converges to \(\zeta\). The component of \(U_\zeta\) containing \(\zeta\) is the immediate basin of \(\zeta\). \textit{F.~Przytycki} [Dynamical systems and ergodic theory, 28th Sem. St. Banach Int. Math. Cent., Warsaw/Pol. 1986, Banach Cent. Publ. 23, 229--235 (1989; Zbl 0703.58033)] proved that if \(f\) is a polynomial, then all such immediate basins are simply connected and unbounded. In the paper under review, the authors extend this result to arbitrary entire functions. The authors also consider so-called virtual immediate basins. Such a basin is a domain \(U \subset \mathbb{C}\) which is maximal (among all domains in \(\mathbb{C}\)) with respect to the properties that the sequence \((N_f^n(z))_{n \in \mathbb{N}}\) tends to \(\infty\) for all \(z \in U\) and that \(U\) contains an absorbing set \(A\). This is an open set \(A\) properly contained in \(U\) such that \(A\) is simply connected, \(N_f(\overline{A} \cap \mathbb{C}) \subset A\), and for every \(z \in U\) there is some \(k\) with \(N_f^k(z) \in A\). It is proved that all these basins are also simply connected. Note that virtual basins, and every absorbing set there of, must be unbounded with \(\infty\) as an accessible boundary point. Such basins do not occur in the case of a polynomial.