Ball packings for links

DOI10.1016/J.EJC.2021.103351MaRDI QIDQ2033894zbMATH OpenOpenAlexFDO

Authors Iván Rasskin, Jorge Luis Ramírez Alfonsín

Publication date 18 June 2021

Published in European Journal of Combinatorics (Search for Journal in Brave)

Full work available at URL https://arxiv.org/abs/2010.00580

zbMATH Keywords

crossing numberfinite balls packingslinksnecklaces

Mathematics Subject Classification ID

Combinatorial aspects of packing and covering (05B40) Real and complex geometry (51M99) Packing and covering in (n) dimensions (aspects of discrete geometry) (52C17) Knot theory (57K10)

Abstract: The ball number of a link $L$, denoted by $ball(L)$, is the minimum number of solid balls (not necessarily of the same size) needed to realize a necklace representing $L$. In this paper, we show that $ball(L)leq5cr(L)$ where $cr(L)$ denotes the crossing number of $L$. To this end, we use Lorentz geometry applied to ball packings. The well-known Koebe-Andreev-Thurston circle packing Theorem is also an important brick for the proof. Our approach yields to an algorithm to construct explicitly the desired necklace representation of $L$ in the 3-dimensional space.

Review text

The ball number of a link \(L\), denoted by \(ball(L)\), is the minimum number of solid balls (not necessarily of the same size) needed to realize a necklace representing \(L\). Let \(cr(L)\) be the crossing number of \(L\). Then it is proved that for any nontrivial nonsplittable link \(ball(L)\leq 5cr(L)\).

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Cites work

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Cited in

(8)

• The two-eyes lemma: a linking problem for table-top necklaces
• scientific article; zbMATH DE number 2079414 (Why is no real title available?)
• scientific article; zbMATH DE number 1507299 (Why is no real title available?)
• scientific article; zbMATH DE number 1421751 (Why is no real title available?)
• Edge close ball packings
• Links in orthoplicial Apollonian packings
• Regular polytopes, sphere packings and Apollonian sections
• A polytopal generalization of Apollonian packings and Descartes' theorem

Describes a project that uses

Uses Software

• CirclePack

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