Freeness of automata groups vs boundary dynamics

Abstract

We prove that the boundary dynamics of the (semi)group generated by the enriched dual transducer characterizes the algebraic property of being free for an automaton group. We specialize this result to the class of bireversible transducers and we show that the property of being not free is equivalent to have a finite Schreier graph in the boundary of the enriched dual pointed on some essentially non-trivial point. From these results we derive some consequences from the dynamical, algorithmic and algebraic point of view. In the last part of the paper we address the problem of finding examples of non-bireversible transducers defining free groups, we show examples of transducers with sink accessible from every state which generate free groups, and, in general, we link this problem to the nonexistence of certain words with interesting combinatorial and geometrical properties.