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Abel's theorem in problems and solutions - School of Mathematics

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Draw<strong>in</strong>gs <strong>of</strong> Riemann surfaces<br />

209<br />

The Riemann surface <strong>of</strong> a complex function as has been def<strong>in</strong>ed<br />

<strong>in</strong> this book, is a collection <strong>of</strong> different copies <strong>of</strong> the plane (the sheets)<br />

suitably jo<strong>in</strong>ed each other along some cuts, <strong>in</strong> such a way that the function<br />

def<strong>in</strong>ed on these sheets, becomes a s<strong>in</strong>gle-valued cont<strong>in</strong>uous function.<br />

However, the Riemann surface <strong>of</strong> a function sometimes<br />

can be realized by a suitable projection <strong>of</strong> its graph, which lives <strong>in</strong><br />

For example, the Riemann surface <strong>of</strong> the function <strong>in</strong> Figure 27 is<br />

homeomorphic to the surface shown <strong>in</strong> Figure 116, which is the graph <strong>of</strong><br />

the real part <strong>of</strong> i.e., the projection <strong>of</strong> the graph <strong>of</strong> this function onto<br />

the three-dimensional space with coord<strong>in</strong>ates<br />

FIGURE 116<br />

The draw<strong>in</strong>gs <strong>of</strong> Riemann surfaces <strong>in</strong> this Appendix are not obta<strong>in</strong>ed<br />

as projections <strong>of</strong> graphs, but they are ‘artificial’ surfaces constructed by<br />

the method just expla<strong>in</strong>ed <strong>in</strong> §2.10.<br />

Here I expla<strong>in</strong> how to ‘read’ these draw<strong>in</strong>gs. The different sheets are<br />

jo<strong>in</strong>ed <strong>in</strong> such a way that the passage from one sheet to another when one<br />

traverses a cut is realized by a smooth curve on the surface. The draw<strong>in</strong>g<br />

notations are the follow<strong>in</strong>g:<br />

Dist<strong>in</strong>ct grey colours <strong>in</strong>dicate dist<strong>in</strong>ct sheets.

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