# Dynamical Systems

## Seminars

You can find the details about all Pure Mathematics seminars here.

The organisers of the Dynamical Systems seminar are Dr Vasiliki Evdoridou and Dr David Martí-Pete. Please contact them if you would like to give a talk or be added to the seminar mailing list.

### Next seminar

Speaker: Alex Kapiamba (University of Michigan)
Title: Elephants all the way down: the near-parabolic geometry of the Mandelbrot set

Time: Thursday December 8, 2022, 13:00-14:00
Place: Online talk (via Zoom)

Abstract: Understanding the geometry of The Mandelbrot set, which records dynamical information about every quadratic polynomial, has been a central task in holomorphic dynamics over the past forty years. Near parabolic parameters, the structure of the Mandelbrot set is asymptotically self-similar and resembles a parade of elephants. Near parabolic parameters on these "elephants'', the Mandelbrot set is again self-similar and resembles another parade of elephants. This phenomenon repeats infinitely, and we see different parades of elephants at each scale. In this talk, we will explore the implications of controlling the geometry of these elephants. In particular, we will partially answer Milnor's conjecture on the optimality of the Yoccoz inequality, and see potential connections to the local connectivity of the Mandelbrot set.

### Upcoming seminars

Speaker: TBA
Title: TBA

Time: Thursday December 15, 2022, 13:00-14:00
Place: TBA

### Previous seminars

Speaker: Rebecca Winarski (College of the Holy Cross)
Title: Tree lifting and twisted rabbits

Time: Thursday November 17, 2022, 13:00-14:00
Place: Room MATH-106 (hybrid via Zoom)

Abstract: Thurston proved that a post-critically finite branched cover of the plane is either equivalent to a polynomial (that is: conjugate via a mapping class) or it has a topological obstruction.  We use topological techniques – adapting tools used to study mapping class groups – to produce an algorithm that determines when a branched cover is equivalent to a polynomial, and if it is, determines which polynomial a topological branched cover is equivalent to.  This is joint work with Jim Belk, Justin Lanier, and Dan Margalit.  I will discuss recent applications of the tree lifting algorithm to solving infinite families of twisted rabbit problems with Lanier and Mukundan.

Speaker: Adam Epstein (University of Warwick)
Title: Integrality and rigidity for postcritically finite polynomials

Time: Thursday November 10, 2022, 13:00-14:00
Place: Room MATH-029 (hybrid via Zoom)

Abstract: It is a well-known fact that the centers of hyperbolic components of the Mandelbrot set are simple roots of their defining polynomials. Using similar arithmetic methods, we prove a version of this result for the multi-dimensional parameter space of higher degree polynomials (of prime power degree). If time permits, we will discuss potential generalisations.

Speaker: Thomas Richards (University of Warwick)
Title: Monodromy and complex Hénon maps

Time: Thursday November 3, 2022, 13:00-14:00
Place: Room MATH-106 (hybrid via Zoom)

Abstract: Blanchard, Devaney, and Keen proved that loops in the shift locus of degree d polynomials induce automorphisms of the one-sided shift of d symbols. Hubbard conjectured that an analogous result holds in Hénon parameter space. In my talk I will discuss this conjecture, and some experimental work aiming to understand it.

Speaker: Maria Kourou (University of Würzburg)
Title: Angular derivatives and petals of semigroups of holomorphic functions

Time: Thursday October 20, 2022, 13:00-14:00
Place: Online talk (via Zoom).

Abstract: Let $(\phi_t)_{t\geq 0}$ be a one-parameter semigroup of holomorphic self-maps of the unit disk $\mathbb{D}$.
A boundary fixed point $\sigma$ of $(\phi_t)$ is called repelling if $\phi_t^{\prime}(\sigma) \in (1, +\infty)$ (in the angular limit sense).
Every repelling fixed point of $(\phi_t)$ corresponds to a petal $\Delta$ that is an open simply connected subset of $\mathbb{D}$ where the restriction of $(\phi_{t})$ is a group of automorphisms.
For every such petal, there exists a conformal mapping $g:\mathbb{D} \to \Delta$ with $g(\sigma)=\sigma$ that is semi-conformal at $\sigma$; i.e. the angular limit $$\angle \lim_{z \to \sigma} \text{Arg} \frac{\sigma - g(z)}{\sigma - z}=0.$$
If, additionally, the angular derivative $g^{\prime}(\sigma) \in \mathbb{C} \setminus \{0\}$, $g$ is conformal at $\sigma$. In this case, the petal $\Delta$ is said to be conformal at $\sigma$.
We discuss necessary and sufficient geometric conditions such that the petal $\Delta$ is conformal at its associated repelling fixed point $\sigma$, obtained in a joint work with Pavel Gumenyuk and Oliver Roth.

Speaker: Myrto Manolaki (University College Dublin)
Title: A strong form of Plessner's theorem and applications

Time: Thursday October 6, 2022, 13:00-14:00
Place: Room MATH-029 (hybrid via Zoom).

Abstract: Let be a holomorphic function on the unit disc. According to Plessner's theorem, for almost every point ζ on the unit circle, either (i) has a finite nontangential limit at ζ, or (ii) the image f (S) of any Stolz angle S at ζ is dense in the complex plane. In this talk, we will see that condition (ii) can be replaced by a much stronger assertion. This strong form of Plessner's theorem and its harmonic analogue on halfspaces also improve classical results of Spencer, Stein and Carleson. (Joint work with Stephen Gardiner.)

Speaker: Jonathan Fraser (University of St Andrews)
Title: Dimensions of parabolic Julia sets and Kleinian limit sets

Time: Wednesday September 7, 2022, 13:00-14:00
Place: Room MATH-117 (hybrid via Zoom)

Abstract: The Sullivan dictionary provides a beautiful correspondence between Kleinian groups acting on hyperbolic space and rational maps of the extended complex plane. An especially direct correspondence exists concerning the dimension theory of the associated limit sets and Julia sets. I will demonstrate that by slightly expanding the family of dimensions considered, a richer and more nuanced correspondence arises. This is joint work with Liam Stuart.