Computing HF^ by factoring mapping classes

Abstract

Bordered Heegaard Floer homology is an invariant for three-manifolds with boundary. In particular, this invariant associates to a handle decomposition of a surface F a differential graded algebra, and to an arc slide between two handle decompositions, a bimodule over the two algebras. In this paper, we describe these bimodules for arc slides explicitly, and then use them to give a combinatorial description of HF^ of a closed three-manifold, as well as the bordered Floer homology of any 3-manifold with boundary.