The topology of minimal surfaces in Seifert fiber spaces

DOI10.1307/MMJ/1029005310MaRDI QIDQ1913307zbMATH OpenOpenAlexFDO

Authors Jon T. Pitts, J. Hyam Rubinstein

Publication date 20 July 1997

Published in Michigan Mathematical Journal (Search for Journal in Brave)

Full work available at URL https://doi.org/10.1307/mmj/1029005310

zbMATH Keywords

foliationhandlebodyKlein bottleminimal surfaceSeifert fiber space

Mathematics Subject Classification ID

Differential geometry of immersions (minimal, prescribed curvature, tight, etc.) (53C42) General geometric structures on low-dimensional manifolds (57M50)

Review text

A basic question in the theory of minimal surfaces in 3-dimensional manifolds is to decide which embeddings of surfaces can be realized by minimal surfaces. Fundamental results were obtained in the case of Riemannian metrics of positive curvatures. Seifert fiber spaces [cf. \textit{P. Orlik}, Seifert manifolds, Lect. Notes Math. 291 (1972; Zbl 0263.57001)] are an important class of examples of 3-dimensional manifolds that admit 1-dimensional foliations by circles. \textit{J. Hass} studied the topology of \(\pi_1\)-injective minimal surfaces in Seifert fiber spaces [Topology Appl. 18, 145-151 (1984; Zbl 0559.57005)]. In this paper, the authors obtain the following topological classification of arbitrary embedded minimal surfaces in such 3-manifolds, extending the result of Hass. If \(\Sigma\) is a closed connected embedded minimal surface in a Seifert fiber space \(M\), then the embedding of \(\Sigma\) is one of the following three (naturally exclusive) types: (1) \(\Sigma\) is a vertical torus or a vertical Klein bottle. (2) \(\Sigma\) is horizontal and \(\pi_1\)-injective. As noted by J. Hass, there are three distinct subcases. (3) \(\Sigma\) is neither vertical nor horizontal. There is a (possibly empty) disjoint family \(\mathfrak F\) of vertical minimal tori and Klein bottles in \(M-\Sigma\). The closure of \(M-\Sigma-\bigcup {\mathfrak F}\) has \(j\) components that are handlebodies or hollow handlebodies; the rest are Seifert fiber spaces with boundaries on \(\bigcup {\mathfrak F}\). Here \(j=2\) if \(\Sigma\) is 2-sided in \(M\) and \(j=1\) if \(\Sigma\) is 1-sided in \(M\). Finally, the authors construct some examples of interesting minimal surfaces in Seifert fiber spaces by means of the minimax technique developed by other authors.

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(7)

• Minimal surfaces in Seifert fiber spaces
• Minimal models and the virtual degree of Seifert fibered spaces
• Minimal Surfaces in Manifolds with S 1 Actions and the Simple Loop Conjecture for Seifert Fibered Spaces
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