Minimal Seifert manifolds (Q5906790)

A partial order between 3-manifolds is defined as follows. If there is a degree one map \(M^3\to N^3\) with \(M^3\) and \(N^3\) not homeomorphic then \(M^3> N^3\). A 3-manifold \(M^3\) is called minimal if the existence of a degree one map \(f:M^3\to N^3\) implies that \(N^3\) is homeomorphic to \(M^3\) or \(S^3\). In the paper the manifolds \(M^3\) and \(N^3\) are supposed to be orientable closed Seifert manifolds. It turns out that Seifert manifolds with more than three exeptional fibres or with a base surface of genus bigger than 1 are not minimal. The minimal Seifert manifolds with finite fundamental groups are: in addition to the projective space \(\mathbb{R} P^3= L(2,1)\) seven other lens spaces, the prism manifolds \(P(n)= M(0;0;2,1;2,1; n,-n\pm 1)\) with \(n=2,6\) or \(n=16r\pm 6\) and the Poincaré homology sphere with fundamental group of order 120. (Here we use the integer invariants of Seifert: genus of the base, obstruction at one normal fibre, types of the exceptional fibres.) For Seifert manifolds with three exceptional fibres, genus 0 and infinite fundamental group the answer is more complicated. The spaces \(M(0;0; 2^k\alpha_1,b_1; 2^k\alpha_2,b_2; 2^k \alpha_3,b_3)\) are minimal if \(k\neq 1\), \(\alpha_j\) odd, \(\text{gcd} (\alpha_i,\alpha_j)=1\) for \(i\neq j\), and there is no pair of \(\alpha_j\) where one is divisible by 3 the other by 5. A homology sphere \(M(0;0; a_1,b_1; a_2,b_2; a_3,b_3)\) with \(a_1= 2a_1'\), \(a_2= 3a_2'\) and \(a_3= 5a_3'\) admits a degree one map to the Poincaré homology sphere and, thus, is not minimal if \(a_1'a_2'a_3'\equiv\pm 1\bmod 120\) or \(49a_1'a_2'a_3' \equiv\pm 1\bmod 120\). There remain undecided cases, the difficulties are due to the study of mappings onto the Poincaré homology sphere. The search for minimal Seifert manifolds follows several different ways. For mappings between spaces with finite fundamental group it is based on the linking matrix and Olum's calculation of the degree. If the target has infinite fundamental group there are used Rong's theorem on the existence of pinches, Seifert's construction of branched coverings, and group theoretical methods to find conditions for the existence or non-existence of epimorphisms between fundamental groups of Seifert manifolds.