Nikolai Saveliev Libros

This textbook, now in its second revised and extended edition, introduces the topology of 3- and 4-dimensional manifolds. It also considers new developments especially related to the Heegaard Floer and contact homology. The book is accessible to graduate students in mathematics and theoretical physics familiar with some elementary algebraic topology, including the fundamental group, basic homology theory, and Poincare duality on manifolds.

Focusing on the intricate world of homology 3-spheres, this book presents a thorough exploration of their significance in geometric topology. It delves into the classification and construction of these manifolds, discussing key invariants such as the Rokhlin and Casson invariants, along with extensions and related concepts. The text introduces several topics that are presented in monograph form for the first time, offering a wide-ranging perspective that will engage both graduate students and researchers in mathematics and theoretical physics.

Homology 3-sphere is a closed 3-dimensional manifold whose homology equals that of the 3-sphere. These objects may look rather special but they have played an outstanding role in geometric topology for the past fifty years. The book gives a systematic exposition of diverse ideas and methods in the area, from algebraic topology of manifolds to invariants arising from quantum field theories. The main topics covered are constructions and classification of homology 3-spheres, Rokhlin invariant, Casson invariant and its extensions, including invariants of Walker and Lescop, Herald and Lin invariants of knots, and equivariant Casson invariants, Floer homology and gauge-theoretical invariants of homology cobordism. Many of the topics covered in the book appear in monograph form for the first time. The book gives a rather broad overview of ideas and methods and provides a comprehensive bibliography. It will be appealing to both graduate students and researchers in mathematics and theoretical physics.