Simple Whitney towers, half-gropes and the Arf invariant of a knot

Abstract: A geometric characterization of the Arf invariant of a knot in the 3-sphere is given in terms of two kinds of 4-dimensional bordisms, half-gropes and Whitney towers. These types of bordisms have associated complexities class and order which filter the condition of bordism by an embedded annulus, i.e. knot concordance, and it is shown constructively that the Arf invariant is exactly the obstruction to cobording pairs of knots by half-gropes and Whitney towers of arbitrarily high class and order. This illustrates geometrically how, in the setting of knot concordance, the Vassiliev (isotopy) invariants "collapse" to the Arf invariant.

Review text

The Arf invariant of a knot \(k\) in \(S^3\) is known to be the only finite type invariant of \(k\) up to concordance. It can be read off the Alexander polynomial. The paper gives a characterization of the Arf invariant in terms of two kinds of 4-dimensional bordisms, by ``half-gropes and ``Whitney towers. The theorem is: For knots \(k_0\) and \(k_1\) in \(S^3\) the following statements are equivalent: (i) \(\text{Arf}(k_0)= \text{Arf}(k_1)\), (ii) \(k_0\) and \(k_1\) cobound a properly embedded class \(n\) half-grope in \(S^3\times I\) for all \(n\in\mathbb N\). (iii) \(k_0\) and \(k_1\) cobound a properly immersed annulus in \(S^3\times I\) admitting an order \(n\) Whitney tower of all \(n\in\mathbb{N}\). The author gives a short introduction to the techniques used to treat immersed surfaces in 4-manifolds employed in the proof and helpful references on gropes, half-gropes and Whitney towers.

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