In this paper we classify Baumslag-Solitar groups up to commensurability. In order to prove our main result we give a solution to the isomorphism problem for a subclass of Generalised Baumslag-Solitar groups.
We study convergent sequences of Baumslag-Solitar groups in the space of marked groups. We prove that BS(m,n) --> F_2 for |m|,|n| --> infty and BS(1,n) --> Z wr Z for |n| --> infty. For m fixed, |m|>1, we show that the sequence (BS(m,n))_n is not con
vergent and characterize many convergent subsequences. Moreover if X_m is the set of BS(m,n)s for n relatively prime to m and |n|>1, then the map BS(m,n) mapsto n extends continuously on the closure of X_m to a surjection onto invertible m-adic integers.
For an element in $BS(1,n) = langle t,a | tat^{-1} = a^n rangle$ written in the normal form $t^{-u}a^vt^w$ with $u,w geq 0$ and $v in mathbb{Z}$, we exhibit a geodesic word representing the element and give a formula for its word length with respect
to the generating set ${t,a}$. Using this word length formula, we prove that there are sets of elements of positive density of positive, negative and zero conjugation curvature, as defined by Bar Natan, Duchin and Kropholler.
In this paper we give asymptotics for the conjugacy growth of the soluble Baumslag-Solitar groups $BS(1,k)$, $kgeq 2$, with respect to the standard generating set, by providing a complete description of geodesic conjugacy representatives. We show tha
t the conjugacy growth series for these groups are transcendental, and give formulas for the series. As a result of our computation we also establish that in each $BS(1,k)$ the conjugacy and standard growth rates are equal.
We prove that for any prime $pgeq 3$ the minimal exponential growth rate of the Baumslag-Solitar group $BS(1,p)$ and the lamplighter group $mathcal{L}_p=(mathbb{Z}/pmathbb{Z})wr mathbb{Z}$ are equal. We also show that for $p=2$ this claim is not true
and the growth rate of $BS(1,2)$ is equal to the positive root of $x^3-x^2-2$, whilst the one of the lamplighter group $mathcal{L}_2$ is equal to the golden ratio $(1+sqrt5)/2$. The latter value also serves to show that the lower bound of A.Mann from [Mann, Journal of Algebra 326, no. 1 (2011) 208--217] for the growth rates of non-semidirect HNN extensions is optimal.
We give a complete list of the cobounded actions of solvable Baumslag-Solitar groups on hyperbolic metric spaces up to a natural equivalence relation. The set of equivalence classes carries a natural partial order first introduced by Abbott-Balasubra
manya-Osin, and we describe the resulting poset completely. There are finitely many equivalence classes of actions, and each equivalence class contains the action on a point, a tree, or the hyperbolic plane.