Nielsen Realisation by Gluing: Limit Groups and Free Products

Abstract

We generalise the Karrass-Pietrowski-Solitar and the Nielsen realisation theorems from the setting of free groups to that of free products. As a result, we obtain a fixed point theorem for finite groups of outer automorphisms acting on the relative free splitting complex of Handel--Mosher and on the outer space of a free product of Guirardel--Levitt, as well as a relative version of the Nielsen realisation theorem, which in the case of free groups answers a question of Karen Vogtmann. We also prove Nielsen realisation for limit groups, and as a byproduct obtain a new proof that limit groups are CAT($0$). The proofs rely on a new version of Stallings' theorem on groups with at least two ends, in which some control over the behaviour of virtual free factors is gained.

28 pages, 1 figure

References in corpus (3)

• Limit groups are CAT(0)
• Realisation and dismantlability
• A gluing theorem for negatively curved complexes

Cited by in corpus (4)

• Nielsen realisation for untwisted automorphisms of right-angled Artin groups
• Automorphismes du groupe des automorphismes d'un groupe de Coxeter universel
• Finite groups of untwisted outer automorphisms of RAAGs
• Divisible cube complexes and finite-order automorphisms of RAAGs