This is the first paper in a two-part series containing some results on dimension estimates for $C^1$ iterated function systems and repellers. In this part, we prove that the upper box-counting dimension of the attractor of any $C^1$ iterated function system (IFS) on ${\Bbb R}^d$ is bounded above by its singularity dimension, and the upper packing dimension of any ergodic invariant measure associated with this IFS is bounded above by its Lyapunov dimension. Similar results are obtained for the repellers for $C^1$ expanding maps on Riemannian manifolds.

We introduce a class of rank-one transformations, which we call extremely elevated staircase transformations. We prove that they are measure-theoretically mixing and, for any $f : \mathbb {N} \to \mathbb {N}$ with $f(n)/n$ increasing and $\sum 1/f(n) < \infty $ , that there exists an extremely elevated staircase with word complexity $p(n) = o(f(n))$ . This improves the previously lowest known complexity for mixing subshifts, resolving a conjecture of Ferenczi.

The f-invariant is an isomorphism invariant of free-group measure-preserving actions introduced by Lewis Bowen, who first used it to show that two finite-entropy Bernoulli shifts over a finitely generated free group can be isomorphic only if their base measures have the same Shannon entropy. Bowen also showed that the f-invariant is a variant of sofic entropy; in particular, it is the exponential growth rate of the expected number of good models over a uniform random homomorphism. In this paper we present an analogous formula for the relative f-invariant and use it to prove a formula for the exponential growth rate of the expected number of good models over a random sofic approximation which is a type of stochastic block model.

We show that the complete positive entropy (CPE) class $\alpha $ of Barbieri and García-Ramos contains a one-dimensional subshift for all countable ordinals $\alpha $ , that is, the process of alternating topological and transitive closure on the entropy pairs relation of a subshift can end on an arbitrary ordinal. This is the composition of three constructions. We first realize every ordinal as the length of an abstract ‘close-up’ process on a countable compact space. Next, we realize any abstract process on a compact zero-dimensional metrizable space as the process started from a shift-invariant relation on a subshift, the crucial construction being the implementation of every compact metrizable zero-dimensional space as an open invariant quotient of a subshift. Finally, we realize any shift-invariant relation E on a subshift X as the entropy pair relation of a supershift $Y \supset X$ , and under strong technical assumptions, we can make the CPE process on Y end on the same ordinal as the close-up process of E.

An iterative square root of a self-map f is a self-map g such that $g(g(\cdot ))=f(\cdot )$ . We obtain new characterizations for detecting the non-existence of such square roots for self-maps on arbitrary sets. They are used to prove that continuous self-maps with no square roots are dense in the space of all continuous self-maps for various topological spaces. The spaces studied include those that are homeomorphic to the unit cube in ${\mathbb R}^{m}$ and to the whole of $\mathbb {R}^{m}$ for every positive integer $m.$ However, we also prove that every continuous self-map on a space homeomorphic to the unit cube in $\mathbb {R}^{m}$ with a fixed point on the boundary can be approximated by iterative squares of continuous self-maps.

In this paper, we introduce the notion of planar two-center Stark–Zeeman systems and define four $J^{+}$ -like invariants for their periodic orbits. The construction is based on a previous construction for a planar one-center Stark–Zeeman system in [K. Cieliebak, U. Frauenfelder and O. van Koert. Periodic orbits in the restricted three-body problem and Arnold’s $J^+$ -invariant. Regul. Chaotic Dyn. 22(4) (2017), 408–434] as well as Levi-Civita and Birkhoff regularizations. We analyze the relationship among these invariants and show that they are largely independent, based on a new construction called interior connected sum.

We present several applications of the weak specification property and certain topological Markov properties, recently introduced by Barbieri, García-Ramos, and Li [Markovian properties of continuous group actions: algebraic actions, entropy and the homoclinic group. Adv. Math. 397 (2022), 52], and implied by the pseudo-orbit tracing property, for general expansive group actions on compact spaces. First we show that any expansive action of a countable amenable group on a compact metrizable space satisfying the weak specification and strong topological Markov properties satisfies the Moore property, that is, every surjective endomorphism of such dynamical system is pre-injective. This together with an earlier result of Li (where the strong topological Markov property is not needed) of the Myhill property [Garden of Eden and specification. Ergod. Th. & Dynam. Sys. 39 (2019), 3075–3088], which we also re-prove here, establishes the Garden of Eden theorem for all expansive actions of countable amenable groups on compact metrizable spaces satisfying the weak specification and strong topological Markov properties. We hint how to easily generalize this result even for uncountable amenable groups and general compact, not necessarily metrizable, spaces. Second, we generalize the recent result of Cohen [The large scale geometry of strongly aperiodic subshifts of finite type. Adv. Math. 308 (2017), 599–626] that any subshift of finite type of a finitely generated group having at least two ends has weakly periodic points. We show that every expansive action of such a group having a certain Markov topological property, again implied by the pseudo-orbit tracing property, has a weakly periodic point. If it has additionally the weak specification property, the set of such points is dense.

We prove an extension of the Moore–Schmidt theorem on the triviality of the first cohomology class of cocycles for the action of an arbitrary discrete group on an arbitrary measure space and for cocycles with values in an arbitrary compact Hausdorff abelian group. The proof relies on a ‘conditional’ Pontryagin duality for spaces of abstract measurable maps.

For $k \geq 2$ , we prove that in a $C^{1}$ -open and $C^{k}$ -dense set of some classes of $C^{k}$ -Anosov flows, all Lyapunov exponents have multiplicity one with respect to appropriate measures. The classes are geodesic flows with equilibrium states of Holder-continuous potentials, volume-preserving flows, and all fiber-bunched Anosov flows with equilibrium states of Holder-continuous potentials.

For any self-similar measure $\mu $ in $\mathbb {R}$ , we show that the distribution of $\mu $ is controlled by products of non-negative matrices governed by a finite or countable graph depending only on the iterated function system of similarities (IFS). This generalizes the net interval construction of Feng from the equicontractive finite-type case. When the measure satisfies the weak separation condition, we prove that this directed graph has a unique attractor. This allows us to verify the multifractal formalism for restrictions of $\mu $ to certain compact subsets of $\mathbb {R}$ , determined by the directed graph. When the measure satisfies the generalized finite-type condition with respect to an open interval, the directed graph is finite and we prove that if the multifractal formalism fails at some $q\in \mathbb {R}$ , there must be a cycle with no vertices in the attractor. As a direct application, we verify the complete multifractal formalism for an uncountable family of IFSs with exact overlaps and without logarithmically commensurable contraction ratios.

We present a new sufficient criterion to prove that a non-sofic half-synchronized subshift is direct prime. The criterion is based on conjugacy invariant properties of Fischer graphs of half-synchronized shifts. We use this criterion to show as a new result that all n-Dyck shifts are direct prime, and we also give new proofs of direct primeness of non-sofic beta-shifts and non-sofic S-gap shifts. We also construct a class of non-sofic synchronized direct prime subshifts which additionally admit reversible cellular automata with all directions sensitive.

We generalize Berg’s notion of quasi-disjointness to actions of countable groups and prove that every measurably distal system is quasi-disjoint from every measure-preserving system. As a corollary, we obtain easy to check necessary and sufficient conditions for two systems to be disjoint, provided one of them is measurably distal. We also obtain a Wiener–Wintner-type theorem for countable amenable groups with distal weights and applications to weighted multiple ergodic averages and multiple recurrence.

We consider skew-product maps over circle rotations $x\mapsto x+\alpha \;(\mod 1)$ with factors that take values in ${\textrm {SL}}(2,{\mathbb {R}})$ . In numerical experiments, with $\alpha $ the inverse golden mean, Fibonacci iterates of maps from the almost Mathieu family exhibit asymptotic scaling behavior that is reminiscent of critical phase transitions. In a restricted setup that is characterized by a symmetry, we prove that critical behavior indeed occurs and is universal in an open neighborhood of the almost Mathieu family. This behavior is governed by a periodic orbit of a renormalization transformation. An extension of this transformation is shown to have a second periodic orbit as well, and we present some evidence that this orbit attracts supercritical almost Mathieu maps.

We prove that for any transitive subshift X with word complexity function $c_n(X)$ , if $\liminf ({\log (c_n(X)/n)}/({\log \log \log n})) = 0$ , then the quotient group ${{\mathrm {Aut}(X,\sigma )}/{\langle \sigma \rangle }}$ of the automorphism group of X by the subgroup generated by the shift $\sigma $ is locally finite. We prove that significantly weaker upper bounds on $c_n(X)$ imply the same conclusion if the gap conjecture from geometric group theory is true. Our proofs rely on a general upper bound for the number of automorphisms of X of range n in terms of word complexity, which may be of independent interest. As an application, we are also able to prove that for any subshift X, if ${c_n(X)}/{n^2 (\log n)^{-1}} \rightarrow 0$ , then $\mathrm {Aut}(X,\sigma )$ is amenable, improving a result of Cyr and Kra. In the opposite direction, we show that for any countable infinite locally finite group G and any unbounded increasing $f: \mathbb {N} \rightarrow \mathbb {N}$ , there exists a minimal subshift X with ${{\mathrm {Aut}(X,\sigma )}/{\langle \sigma \rangle }}$ isomorphic to G and ${c_n(X)}/{nf(n)} \rightarrow 0$ .

In this article, we continue the structural study of factor maps between symbolic dynamical systems and the relative thermodynamic formalism. Here, one is studying a factor map from a shift of finite type X (equipped with a potential function) to a sofic shift Z, equipped with a shift-invariant measure $\nu $ . We study relative equilibrium states, that is, shift-invariant measures on X that push forward under the factor map to $\nu $ which maximize the relative pressure: the relative entropy plus the integral of $\phi $ . In this paper, we establish a new connection to multiplicative ergodic theory by relating these factor triples to a cocycle of Ruelle–Perron–Frobenius operators, and showing that the principal Lyapunov exponent of this cocycle is the relative pressure; and the dimension of the leading Oseledets space is equal to the number of measures of relative maximal entropy, counted with a previously identified concept of multiplicity.

Let G be the group $\text {PAff}_{+}(\mathbb R/\mathbb Z)$ of piecewise affine circle homeomorphisms or the group ${\operatorname {\mathrm {Diff}}}^{{\kern1pt}\infty }(\mathbb R/\mathbb Z)$ of smooth circle diffeomorphisms. A constructive proof that all irrational rotations are distorted in G is given.

In this paper, we discuss a connection between geometric measure theory and number theory. This method brings a new point of view for some number-theoretic problems concerning digit expansions. Among other results, we show that for each integer k, there is a number $M>0$ such that if $b_{1},\ldots ,b_{k}$ are multiplicatively independent integers greater than M, there are infinitely many integers whose base $b_{1},b_{2},\ldots ,b_{k}$ expansions all do not have any zero digits.

Although detailed descriptions of the possible types of behaviour inside periodic Fatou components have been known for over 100 years, a classification of wandering domains has only recently been given. Recently, simply connected wandering domains were classified into nine possible types and examples of escaping wandering domains of each of these types were constructed. Here we consider the case of oscillating wandering domains, for which only six of these types are possible. We use a new technique based on approximation theory to construct examples of all six types of oscillating simply connected wandering domains. This requires delicate arguments since oscillating wandering domains return infinitely often to a bounded part of the plane. Our technique is inspired by that used by Eremenko and Lyubich to construct the first example of an oscillating wandering domain, but with considerable refinements which enable us to show that the wandering domains are bounded, to specify the degree of the mappings between wandering domains and to give precise descriptions of the dynamical behaviour of these mappings.

In this paper we consider two piecewise Riemannian metrics defined on the Culler–Vogtmann outer space which we call the entropy metric and the pressure metric. As a result of work of McMullen, these metrics can be seen as analogs of the Weil–Petersson metric on the Teichmüller space of a closed surface. We show that while the geometric analysis of these metrics is similar to that of the Weil–Petersson metric, from the point of view of geometric group theory, these metrics behave very differently than the Weil–Petersson metric. Specifically, we show that when the rank r is at least 4, the action of $\operatorname {\mathrm {Out}}(\mathbb {F}_r)$ on the completion of the Culler–Vogtmann outer space using the entropy metric has a fixed point. A similar statement also holds for the pressure metric.

We establish exponential decay of correlations of all orders for locally G-accessible isometric extensions of transitive Anosov flows, under the assumption that the strong stable and strong unstable distributions of the base Anosov flow are  $C^1$ . This is accomplished by translating accessibility properties of the extension into local non-integrability estimates measured by infinitesimal transitivity groups used by Dolgopyat, from which we obtain contraction properties for a class of ‘twisted’ symbolic transfer operators.