In the mathematical theory of knots, the unknot, not knot, or trivial knot, is the least knotted of all knots. Intuitively, the unknot is a closed loop of rope without a knot tied into it, unknotted. To a knot theorist, an unknot is any embedded topological circle in the 3-sphere that is ambient isotopic to a geometrically round circle, the standard unknot.
In topology, knot theory is the study of mathematical knots. While inspired by knots which appear in daily life, such as those in shoelaces and rope, a mathematical knot differs in that the ends are joined so it cannot be undone, the simplest knot being a ring. In mathematical language, a knot is an embedding of a circle in 3-dimensional Euclidean space, . Two mathematical knots are equivalent if one can be transformed into the other via a deformation of upon itself ; these transformations correspond to manipulations of a knotted string that do not involve cutting it or passing it through itself.
In mathematics, a knot is an embedding of the circle S1 into three-dimensional Euclidean space, R3. Often two knots are considered equivalent if they are ambient isotopic, that is, if there exists a continuous deformation of R3 which takes one knot to the other.
In mathematics, the linking number is a numerical invariant that describes the linking of two closed curves in three-dimensional space. Intuitively, the linking number represents the number of times that each curve winds around the other. In Euclidean space, the linking number is always an integer, but may be positive or negative depending on the orientation of the two curves.
In mathematics, geometric topology is the study of manifolds and maps between them, particularly embeddings of one manifold into another.
In mathematics, the Borromean rings are three simple closed curves in three-dimensional space that are topologically linked and cannot be separated from each other, but that break apart into two unknotted and unlinked loops when any one of the three is cut or removed. Most commonly, these rings are drawn as three circles in the plane, in the pattern of a Venn diagram, alternatingly crossing over and under each other at the points where they cross. Other triples of curves are said to form the Borromean rings as long as they are topologically equivalent to the curves depicted in this drawing.
In mathematics, a 3-manifold is a topological space that locally looks like a three-dimensional Euclidean space. A 3-manifold can be thought of as a possible shape of the universe. Just as a sphere looks like a plane to a small enough observer, all 3-manifolds look like our universe does to a small enough observer. This is made more precise in the definition below.
In the mathematical field of algebraic topology, the homotopy groups of spheres describe how spheres of various dimensions can wrap around each other. They are examples of topological invariants, which reflect, in algebraic terms, the structure of spheres viewed as topological spaces, forgetting about their precise geometry. Unlike homology groups, which are also topological invariants, the homotopy groups are surprisingly complex and difficult to compute.
In the mathematical field of knot theory, the Jones polynomial is a knot polynomial discovered by Vaughan Jones in 1984. Specifically, it is an invariant of an oriented knot or link which assigns to each oriented knot or link a Laurent polynomial in the variable with integer coefficients.
In mathematical knot theory, a link is a collection of knots which do not intersect, but which may be linked together. A knot can be described as a link with one component. Links and knots are studied in a branch of mathematics called knot theory. Implicit in this definition is that there is a trivial reference link, usually called the unlink, but the word is also sometimes used in context where there is no notion of a trivial link.
In mathematical knot theory, the Hopf link is the simplest nontrivial link with more than one component. It consists of two circles linked together exactly once, and is named after Heinz Hopf.
In knot theory, the Whitehead link, named for J. H. C. Whitehead, is one of the most basic links. It can be drawn as an alternating link with five crossings, from the overlay of a circle and a figure-eight shaped loop.
In mathematics, Khovanov homology is an oriented link invariant that arises as the cohomology of a cochain complex. It may be regarded as a categorification of the Jones polynomial.
In algebraic topology, the Massey product is a cohomology operation of higher order introduced in, which generalizes the cup product. The Massey product was created by William S. Massey, an American algebraic topologist.
A slice knot is a mathematical knot in 3-dimensional space that bounds an embedded disk in 4-dimensional space.
In the mathematical field of knot theory, an unlink is a link that is equivalent to finitely many disjoint circles in the plane.
In knot theory, an area of mathematics, the link group of a link is an analog of the knot group of a knot. They were described by John Milnor in his Ph.D. thesis,. Notably, the link group is not in general the fundamental group of the link complement.
