On tunnel numbers of a cable knot and its companion

DOI10.1016/J.TOPOL.2020.107319MaRDI QIDQ2215646zbMATH OpenOpenAlexFDO

Authors Junhua Wang, Yanqing Zou

Publication date 14 December 2020

Published in Topology and its Applications (Search for Journal in Brave)

Full work available at URL https://arxiv.org/abs/2002.07326

zbMATH Keywords

cable knotHeegaard distancetunnel number

Mathematics Subject Classification ID

Knot theory (57K10)

Abstract: Let $K$ be a nontrivial knot in $S^3$ and $t(K)$ its tunnel number. For any $(pgeq2,q)$-slope in the torus boundary of a closed regular neighborhood of $K$ in $S^3$, denoted by $K^{star}$, it is a nontrivial cable knot in $S^3$. Though $t(K^{star})leqt(K)+1$, Example 1.1 in Section 1 shows that in some case, $t(K^{star})leqt(K)$. So it is interesting to know when $t(K^{star})=t(K)+1$. After using some combinatorial techniques, we prove that (1) for any nontrivial cable knot $K^{star}$ and its companion $K$, $t(K^{star})geqt(K)$; (2) if either $K$ admits a high distance Heegaard splitting or $p/q$ is far away from a fixed subset in the Farey graph, then $t(K^{star})=t(K)+1$. Using the second conclusion, we construct a satellite knot and its companion so that the difference between their tunnel numbers is arbitrary large.

Review text

The tunnel number of a knot is the minimal number of arcs to be added to the knot so that the complement becomes a handlebody. It is a knot invariant and every knot is either hyperbolic, a torus knot, or a satellite knot. In this paper, the authors provide an interesting family of cable knots which is contained in the set of satellite knots and which has inequalities for the tunnel numbers between the cable knot and its companion. For a given nontrivial knot \(K\) in \(S^3\), they take \((p\geq 2, q)\)-cable knots, which are nontrivial cable knots, denoted by \(K^*\). They first prove that \(t(K^*)\geq t(K)\) and that \(t(K^*)=t(K)\) if \(K^*\) is a \((p,q)\)-cable and \(K\) is \(p/q\)-primitive by the fact that \(t(K^*)\leq t(K)\) if \(K\) and \(K^*\) satisfy the same condition. For the main result, they find two conditions for equality \(t(K^*)=t(K)+1\) as follows: \((1)\) either \(K\) admits a high distance Heegaard splitting or \(p/q\) is far away from a fixed subset in the Farey graph. In order to prove the main result, they use interesting and excellent combinatorial techniques on the Heegaard splitting of the knot exterior in \(S^3\). Moreover, by using a construction of satellite knot from the cable knot \(K^*\) they give an example of a satellite knot which has arbitrary large tunnel number difference from the companion \(K\).

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Cited in

(3)

• Tunnel leveling, depth, and bridge numbers
• Small difference between tunnel numbers of cable knots and their companions
• On the tunnel number and the Morse-Novikov number of knots

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