Pseudo-Anosov braids with small entropy and the magic 3-manifold (Q429258)

Let \(\Sigma\) be a an orientable surface and \(\mathcal{M}(\Sigma)\) its mapping class group. For a pseudo-Anosov mapping class \(\phi = [\Phi ]\) of \(\mathcal{M}(\Sigma)\), where \(\Phi : \Sigma \to \Sigma\) is a pseudo-Anosov homeomorphism, the dilatation \(\lambda(\phi)\) is defined as the dilatation \(\lambda(\Phi) (>1)\) of \(\Phi\). Then the (topological) entropy \(\mathrm{ent}(\Phi)\) coincides with \(\log(\lambda(\Phi))\) and attains the minimal entropy among all homeomorphisms isotopic to \(\Phi\). So define \(\mathrm{ent}(\phi) = \mathrm{ent}(\Phi)\). It is interesting to determine the mapping class realizing the minimal entropy. In the paper under review, the authors consider the ``magic'' \(3\)-manifold \(M\), which is the exterior of a chain link of three components. Since the large number of hyperbolic manifolds having exceptional (non-hyperbolic) Dehn fillings are obtained from \(M\), \textit{C. M. Gordon} and \textit{Y.-Q. Wu} [Comment. Math. Helv. 75, No. 3, 430--456 (2000; Zbl 0964.57020)] call \(M\) the magic manifold. Note that \(M\) admits infinitely many different fibrations over the circle. Using an open cone over a fiber face of the unit ball (with respect to the Thurston norm) [\textit{W. P. Thurston}, Mem. Am. Math. Soc. 339, 99--130 (1986; Zbl 0585.57006)], the authors determine homology classes whose norm-minimizing surfaces are punctured spheres \(\Sigma\) each of which is a surface fiber of a fibration over the circle. Then among those classes whose minimal representatives are \(n\)-punctured spheres \(\Sigma_{0, n}\), they decide which one has a monodromy with minimal entropy, and describe the monodromy by a braid. Since the monodromy on \(\Sigma_{0, n}\) described above fix a puncture, it is regarded as a monodromy of the \((n-1)\)-punctured disk \(D_{n-1}\). Furthermore, it fixes, say, the first puncture of \(D_{n-1}\), so one can also obtain a monodromy on the \((n-2)\)-punctured disk \(D_{n-2}\) by capping off the first puncture with a small disk. (An \((n-2)\)-braid describing the resulting monodromy on \(D_{n-2}\) is obtained from the \((n-1)\)-braid describing the original monodromy on \(D_{n-1}\) by forgetting the first strand.) Consequently, the authors show that for each \(m \geq 9\) (resp. \(m = 3, 4, 5, 7, 8\)), there exists a pseudo-Anosov homeomorphism \(\Phi_m : D_m \to D_m\) with the smallest known entropy (resp. the smallest entropy) occurring as the monodromy on an \(m\)-punctured disk fiber for \(\overline{M}\) obtained from \(M\) by filling along one torus boundary of \(M\). In case of \(m = 6\), they show that a pseudo-Anosov homeomorphism \(\Phi_6 : D_6 \to D_6\) with the smallest entropy occurs as the monodromy of a \(6\)-punctured disk (\(7\)-punctured sphere \(\Sigma_{0, 7}\)) fiber surface for \(M\).