Symplectic Lefschetz fibrations on S^1 x M^3

Weimin Chen, Rostislav Matveyev

Published 2000-02-03, updated 2000-12-31Version 3

In this paper we classify symplectic Lefschetz fibrations (with empty base locus) on a four-manifold which is the product of a three-manifold with a circle. This result provides further evidence in support of the following conjecture regarding symplectic structures on such a four-manifold: if the product of a three-manifold with a circle admits a symplectic structure, then the three-manifold must fiber over a circle, and up to a self-diffeomorphism of the four-manifold, the symplectic structure is deformation equivalent to the canonical symplectic structure determined by the fibration of the three-manifold over the circle.