Minimal surface representations of virtual knots and links.
François Jaeger found a number of beautiful connections between combinatorics and the topology of knots and links, culminating in an intricate relationship between link invariants and the Bose-Mesner algebra of an association scheme. This paper gives an introduction to this connection.
This paper introduces a self-linking invariant for virtual knots and links, and relates this invariant to a state model called the binary bracket, and to a class of coloring problems for knots and links that include classical coloring problems for cubic graphs.
We show a relation between products of knots, which are generalized from the theory of isolated singularities of complex hypersurfaces, and local moves on knots in all dimensions. We discuss the following problem. Let K be a 1-knot which is obtained from another 1-knot J by a single crossing change (resp. pass-move). For a given knot A, what kind of relation do the products of knots, K ⊗ A and J ⊗ A, have? We characterize these kinds of relation between K ⊗ A and J ⊗ A by using local moves on high...
We use crossing parity to construct a generalization of biquandles for virtual knots which we call parity biquandles. These structures include all biquandles as a standard example referred to as the even parity biquandle. We find all parity biquandles arising from the Alexander biquandle and quaternionic biquandles. For a particular construction named the z-parity Alexander biquandle we show that the associated polynomial yields a lower bound on the number of odd crossings as well as the total number...
This paper gives a new method for converting virtual knots and links to virtual braids. Indeed, the braiding method given here is quite general and applies to all the categories in which braiding can be accomplished. This includes the braiding of classical, virtual, flat, welded, unrestricted, and singular knots and links. We also give reduced presentations for the virtual braid group and for the flat virtual braid group (as well as for other categories). These reduced presentations are based on...
We describe new approaches for constructing virtual knot invariants. The main background of this paper comes from formulating and bringing together the ideas of biquandle [KR], [FJK], the virtual quandle [Ma2], the ideas of quaternion biquandles by Roger Fenn and Andrew Bartholomew [BF], the concepts and properties of long virtual knots [Ma10], and other ideas in the interface between classical and virtual knot theory. In the present paper we present a new algebraic construction of virtual knot...
Knot polynomials have been used to detect and classify knots in biomolecules. Computation of knot polynomials in DNA and protein molecules have revealed the existence of knotted structures, and provided important insight into their topological structures. However, conventional knot polynomials are not well suited to study RNA molecules, as RNA structures are determined by stem regions which are not taken into account in conventional knot polynomials. In this study, we develop a new class of knot...
For any link and for any modulus m we introduce an equivalence relation on the set of non-trivial m-colorings of the link (an m-coloring has values in Z/mZ). Given a diagram of the link, the equivalence class of a non-trivial m-coloring is formed by each assignment of colors to the arcs of the diagram that is obtained from the former coloring by a permutation of the colors in the arcs which preserves the coloring condition at each crossing. This requirement implies topological invariance of the...
The present paper gives a quick survey of virtual and classical knot theory and presents a list of unsolved problems about virtual knots and links. These are all problems in low-dimensional topology with a special emphasis on virtual knots. In particular, we touch new approaches to knot invariants such as biquandles and Khovanov homology theory. Connections to other geometrical and combinatorial aspects are also discussed.
This paper is a concise introduction to virtual knot theory, coupled with a list of research problems in this field.
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