A language theoretic analysis of combings

Sarah Rees

Keywords

combings, formal language classes, fellow traveller property, automatic groups

Status

In Contemporary Mathematics, 250, 117-136.

Abstract

A group is combable if it can be represented by a language of words satisfying a fellow traveller property; an automatic group has a synchronous combing which is a regular language. This paper gives a systematic analysis of the properties of groups with combings in various formal language classes, and of the closure properties of the associated classes of groups. It generalises previous work, in particular of Epstein et al. and Bridson and Gilman.

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Sarah Rees
28 April 1999.