The geometry of generalized loxodromic elements

Abstract

We explore geometric conditions which ensure a given element of a finitely generated group is, or fails to be, generalized loxodromic; as part of this we prove a generalization of Sisto's result that every generalized loxodromic element is Morse. We provide a sufficient geometric condition for an element of a small cancellation group to be generalized loxodromic in terms of the defining relations and provide a number of constructions which prove that this condition is sharp.

22 pages. To appear in Ann. Inst. Fourier