We describe a natural decomposition of a normal complex surface singularity ($X$, 0) into its “thick” and “thin” parts. The former is essentially metrically conical, while the latter shrinks rapidly in thickness as it approaches the origin. The thin part is empty if and only if the singularity is metrically conical; the link of the singularity is then Seifert fibered. In general the thin part will not be empty, in which case it always carries essential topology. Our decomposition has some analogy with the Margulis thick-thin decomposition for a negatively curved manifold. However, the geometric behavior is very different; for example, often most of the topology of a normal surface singularity is concentrated in the thin parts.

We consider$Thurston maps$, i.e., branched covering maps$f:S$^{2}→$S$^{2}that are$post-critically finite$. In addition, we assume that$f$is$expanding$in a suitable sense. It is shown that each sufficiently high iterate$F$=$f$^{$n$}of$f$is$semi-conjugate$to$z$^{$d$}:$S$^{1}→$S$^{1}, where$d$= deg F. More precisely, for such an$F$we construct a$Peano curve γ$:$S$^{1}→$S$^{2}(onto), such that$F$∘$γ$($z$) =$γ$($z$^{$d$}) (for all$z$∈$S$^{1}).

We give a complete proof of the Bers–Sullivan–Thurston density conjecture. In the light of the ending lamination theorem, it suffices to prove that any collection of possible ending invariants is realized by some algebraic limit of geometrically finite hyperbolic manifolds. The ending invariants are either Riemann surfaces or filling laminations supporting Masur domain measured laminations and satisfying some mild additional conditions. With any set of ending invariants we associate a sequence of geometrically finite hyperbolic manifolds and prove that this sequence has a convergent subsequence. We derive the necessary compactness theorem combining the Rips machine with non-existence results for certain small actions on real trees of free products of surface groups and free groups. We prove then that the obtained algebraic limit has the desired conformal boundaries and the property that none of the filling laminations is realized by a pleated surface. In order to be able to apply the ending lamination theorem, we have to prove that this algebraic limit has the desired topological type and that these non-realized laminations are ending laminations. That this is the case is the main novel technical result of this paper. Loosely speaking, we show that a filling Masur domain lamination which is not realized is an ending lamination.

In the moduli space $$ \mathcal{M} $$ _{$g$}of genus-$g$Riemann surfaces, consider the locus $$ \mathcal{R}{\mathcal{M}_{\mathcal{O}}} $$ of Riemann surfaces whose Jacobians have real multiplication by the order $$ \mathcal{O} $$ in a totally real number field$F$of degree$g$. If$g$= 3, we compute the closure of $$ \mathcal{R}{\mathcal{M}_{\mathcal{O}}} $$ in the Deligne–Mumford compactification of $$ \mathcal{M} $$ _{$g$}and the closure of the locus of eigenforms over $$ \mathcal{R}{\mathcal{M}_{\mathcal{O}}} $$ in the Deligne–Mumford compactification of the moduli space of holomorphic 1-forms. For higher genera, we give strong necessary conditions for a stable curve to be in the boundary of $$ \mathcal{R}{\mathcal{M}_{\mathcal{O}}} $$ . Boundary strata of $$ \mathcal{R}{\mathcal{M}_{\mathcal{O}}} $$ are parameterized by configurations of elements of the field$F$satisfying a strong geometry of numbers type restriction.

Building on [BB1] we prove a general criterion for convergence of (possibly singular) Bergman measures towards pluripotential-theoretic equilibrium measures on complex manifolds. The criterion may be formulated in terms of the growth properties of the unit-balls of certain norms on holomorphic sections, or equivalently as an asymptotic minimization property for generalized Donaldson$L$-functionals. Our result settles in particular a well-known conjecture in pluripotential theory concerning the equidistribution of Fekete points and it gives the convergence of Bergman measures towards the equilibrium measure for Bernstein-Markov measures. Applications to interpolation of holomorphic sections are also discussed.