SOME NUMERICAL INVARIANTS OF FLAT VIRTUAL LINKS ARE ALWAYS REALIZED BY REDUCED DIAGRAMS

Abstract

Any flat virtual link has a reduced diagram which satisfies a certain minimality, and reduced diagrams are related one another by a finite sequence of a certain Reidemeister move. The move preserves some numerical invariants of diagrams. So we can define numerical invariants for flat virtual links. One of them, the crossing number of a flat virtual knot K, coinsides with the self-intersection number of K as an essential geodesic loop on a hyperbolic closed surface. We also show an equation among these numerical invariants, basic properties by using the equation, and determine non-split flat virtual links with the crossing number up to three.