Alternating Heegaard diagrams and Williams solenoid attractors in 3-manifolds (Q519482)

Investigations on the dynamics of self-diffeomorphisms led S. Smale and R. F. Williams to the notion of solenoid, modeled on proper vs. branched \(1\)-manifolds, occurring preferably as attracting or repelling non-wandering sets. For a Heegaard decomposition of genus \(2\) of a \(3\)-manifold, a Heegaard diagram, alternating or weakly alternating, consists of a system of simple closed curves on the splitting surface with specified properties. Controled by these curves, and along a handcuff's spine for each of the two handlebodies, a self-diffeomorphism of the \(3\)-manifold is constructed whose non-wandering set is the union of two Williams solenoids, one attractor and one repeller, which are modeled on the handcuffs spines. Large classes of \(3\)-manifolds are identified to carry such Heegaard diagrams, e.g. the Poincaré homology sphere, many prism manifolds and all integer Dehn surgeries on the figure eight knot.