For each prime power $q\geq 5$, we construct a rank four chiral polytope that has a group $PSL(3,q)$ as automorphism group and Schläfli type $\{q-1,\frac{2(q-1)}{(3,q-1)},q-1\}$. We also construct rank five polytopes for some values of $q$ and we show that there is no chiral polytope of rank at least six having a group $PSL(3,q)$ or $PSU(3,q)$ as automorphism group.
It is already known that the automorphism group of a chiral polyhedron is never isomorphic to $PSL(2,q)$ or $PGL(2,q)$ for any prime power $q$. In this paper, we show that $PSL(2,q)$ and $PGL(2,q)$ are never automorphism groups of chiral polytopes of rank at least $5$. Moreover, we show that $PGL(2,q)$ is the automorphism group of at least one chiral polytope of rank $4$ for every $q\geq5$. Finally, we determine for which values of $q$ the group $PSL(2,q)$ is the automorphism group of a chiral polytope of rank $4$, except when $q=p^d\equiv3\pmod{4}$ where $d>1$ is not a prime power, in which c…
We complete the description of automorphism groups of all nonsplit extensions of elementary abelian $2$-groups by $PSL_2(q)$, with $q$ odd, for an irreducible induced action. An application of this result to the theory of $π$-submaximal subgroups is given.
We classify the nonsplit extensions of elementary abelian $p$-groups by $PSL_2(q)$, with odd $p$ dividing $q-1$, for an irreducible induced action, calculate the relevant low-dimensional cohomology groups, and describe the automorphism groups of such extensions.
Polytopes are ubiquitous in different areas of mathematics. Gleason and Hubard established a factorisation theorem, stating that every abstract polytope has a unique factorisation into prime polytopes. We compute the automorphism group of a certain family of inductively constructed polytopes using the unique factorisation.
We present a new algorithm to compute all the chiral polytopes that have a given group $G$ as full automorphism group. This algorithm uses a new set of generators that characterize the group, all of them except one being involutions. It permits to compute all chiral polytopes of groups that were previously unreachable by other known algorithms.
Let $\mathcal D$ be a nontrivial symmetric $(v,k,λ)$ design, and $G$ be a subgroup of the full automorphism group of $\mathcal D$. In this paper we prove that if $G$ acts flag-transitively, point-primitively on $\mathcal D$ and $Soc(G)= PSL(2,q)$, then D has parameters $(7, 3, 1)$, $(7, 4, 2)$, $(11, 5, 2)$, $(11, 6, 3)$ or $(15, 8, 4)$.
We prove that every finite non-abelian simple group acts as the automorphism group of a chiral polyhedron, apart from the groups $PSL_2(q)$, $PSL_3(q)$, $PSU_3(q)$ and $A_7$.
Denote by $ω(G)$ the number of orbits of the action of $Aut(G)$ on the finite group $G$. We prove that if $G$ is a finite nonsolvable group in which $ω(G) \leqslant 5$, then $G$ is isomorphic to one of the groups $A_5,A_6,PSL(2,7)$ or $PSL(2,8)$. We also consider the case when $ω(G) = 6$ and show that if $G$ is a nonsolvable finite group with $ω(G) = 6$, then either $G \simeq PSL(3,4)$ or there exists a characteristic elementary abelian $2$-subgroup $N$ of $G$ such that $G/N \simeq A_5$.
In this paper we show that the rank of every chiral polytope having a Suzuki group as automorphism group is $3$. This gives a positive answer to a conjecture of Isabel Hubard and Dimitri Leemans.
Let $p$ be an odd prime, $m\in {\mathbb N}$ and set $q=p^m$, $G=\operatorname{PSL}_n(q)$. Let $θ$ be a standard graph automorphism of $G$, $d$ be a diagonal automorphism and $\operatorname{Fr}_q$ be the Frobenius endomorphism of $\operatorname{PSL}_n(\overline{{\mathbb F}_q})$. We show that every $(d\circ θ)$-conjugacy class of a $(d\circ θ,p)$-regular element in $G$ is represented in some $\operatorname{Fr}_q$-stable maximal torus and that most of them are of type D. We write out the possible exceptions and show that, in particular, if $n\geq5$ is either odd or a multiple of $4$ and $q>7$, th…
We show that the group $PSL(2,R)$ is a spherical subgroup in the group of $C^3$-diffeomorphisms of the circle. Also, the group of automorphisms of a Bruhat--Tits tree is a spherical subgroup in the group of hierarchomorphisms of the tree.
Every Ree group $R(q)$, with $q\neq 3$ an odd power of 3, is the automorphism group of an abstract regular polytope, and any such polytope is necessarily a regular polyhedron (a map on a surface). However, an almost simple group $G$ with $R(q) < G \leq \mathsf{Aut}(R(q))$ is not a C-group and therefore not the automorphism group of an abstract regular polytope of any rank.
For each $d\geq 3$, $n \geq 10$, and $k_1, k_2, \ldots, k_{d-1}\geq 2$ with $k_1+k_2+\ldots+k_{d-1}\leq n-1$, we construct a regular $d$-polytope whose automorphism group is of order $2^n$ and whose Schläfli type is $\{2^{k_1},2^{k_2}, \ldots, 2^{k_{d-1}}\}$.
We study properties of the realizations of groups as the combinatorial automorphism group of a convex polytope. We show that for any non-abelian group $G$ with a central involution there is a centrally symmetric polytope with $G$ as its combinatorial automorphisms. We show that for each integer $n$, there are groups that cannot be realized as the combinatorial automorphisms of convex polytopes of dimension at most $n$. We also give an optimal lower bound for the dimension of the realization of a group as the group of isometries that preserves a convex polytope.
We classify the regular maps $\mathcal M$ which have automorphism groups $G$ acting faithfully and primitively on their vertices. As a permutation group $G$ must be of almost simple or affine type, with dihedral point stabilisers. We show that all such almost simple groups, namely all but a few groups ${\rm PSL}_2(q)$, ${\rm PGL}_2(q)$ and ${\rm Sz}(q)$, arise from regular maps, which are always non-orientable. In the affine case, the maps $\mathcal M$ occur in orientable and non-orientable Petrie dual pairs. We give the number of maps associated with each group, together with their genus and …
A detailed proof is given of a theorem describing the centraliser of a transitive permutation group, with applications to automorphism groups of objects in various categories of maps, hypermaps, dessins, polytopes and covering spaces, where the automorphism group of an object is the centraliser of its monodromy group. An alternative form of the theorem, valid for finite objects, is discussed, with counterexamples based on Baumslag--Solitar groups to show how it fails more generally. The automorphism groups of objects with primitive monodromy groups are described, as are those of non-connected …
Let $\overline G$ be the wonderful compactification of a simple affine algebraic group $G$ defined over $\mathbb C$ such that its center is trivial and $G\not= {\rm PSL}(2,\mathbb{C})$. Take a maximal torus $T \subset G$, and denote by $\overline T$ its closure in $\overline G$. We prove that $T$ coincides with the connected component, containing the identity element, of the group of automorphisms of the variety $\overline T$.
We analyze the group structures of two groups of order 1344 which are respectively non-split and split extensions of the elementary Abelian group of order 8 by its automorphism group PSL_2(7).They share the same character table. The group 2^3.PSL_2(7) is a finite subgroup of the Lie Group G_2 preserving the set of octonions \pm e_i , (i=1,2,...,7) representing a 7-dimensional octahedron.Its three maximal subgroups 2^3:7:3, 2^3.S_4 and 4.S_4:2 correspond to the finite subgroups of the Lie groups G_2, SO(4) and SU(3) respectively. The group 2^3:PSL_2(7) representing the split extension possesses…
We prove that, for n=3 and 4, the minimal nonabelian finite factor group of the outer automorphism group Out F_n of a free group of rank n is the linear group PSL_n(Z_2) (conjecturally, this may remain true for arbitrary rank n > 2). We also discuss some computational results on low index subgroups of Aut F_n and Out F_n, for n = 3 and 4, using presentations of these groups.
We augment the list of finite universal locally toroidal regular polytopes of type {3,3,4,3,3} due to P.McMullen and E.Schulte, adding as well as removing entries. This disproves a related long-standing conjecture. Our new universal polytope is related to a well-known Y-shaped presentation for the sporadic simple group $Fi_{22}$, and admits $S_4\times O_8^+(2){:}S_3$ as the automorphism group. We also discuss further extensions of its quotients in the context of Y-shaped presentations. As well, we note that two known examples of finite universal polytopes of type {3,3,4,3,3} are related to Y-s…
This paper is devoted to the classification of flag-transitive 2-(v,k,2) designs. We show that apart from two known symmetric 2-(16,6,2) designs, every flag-transitive subgroup G of the automorphism group of a nontrivial 2-(v,k,2) design is primitive of affine or almost simple type. Moreover, we classify the 2-(v,k,2) designs admitting a flag transitive almost simple group G with socle PSL(n,q) for some n \geq 3. Alongside this analysis, we give a construction for a flag-transitive 2-(v,k-1,k-2) design from a given flag-transitive 2-(v,k,1) design which induces a 2-transitive action on a line.…
In this note, we prove that if every character of a finite group $G$ fixed by an order-2 Galois automorphism has odd degree, then $G$ has a normal Sylow $2$-subgroup. On the way, we study extensions of characters of $GL_n(q)$, $q$ odd, to the group extended by the transpose-inverse automorphism and prove that unipotent characters of $PSL_n(q)$ extend to rational characters of its automorphism group.
Let $α$ be a coprime automorphism of a group $G$ of prime order and let $P$ be an $α$-invariant Sylow $p$-subgroup of $G$. Assume that $p\notin π(C_G(α))$. Firstly, we prove that $G$ is $p$-nilpotent if and only if $C_{N_G(P)}(α)$ centralizes $P$. In the case that $G$ is $Sz(2^r)$ and $PSL(2,2^r)$-free where $r=|α|$, we show that $G$ is $p$-closed if and only if $C_G(α)$ normalizes $P$. As a consequences of these two results, we obtain that $G\cong P\times H$ for a group $H$ if and only if $C_G(α)$ centralizes $P$. We also prove a generalization of the Frobenius $p$-nilpotency theorem for grou…
Cyclohedra are a well-known infinite familiy of finite-dimensional polytopes that can be constructed from centrally symmetric triangulations of even-sided polygons. In this article we introduce an infinite-dimensional analogue and prove that the group of symmetries of our construction is a semidirect product of a degree 2 central extension of Thompson's infinite finitely presented simple group T with the cyclic group of order 2. These results are inspired by a similar recent analysis by the first author of the automorphism group of an infinite-dimensional associahedron.
We study incidence geometries that are thin and residually connected. These geometries generalise abstract polytopes. In this generalised setting, guided by the ideas from the polytopes theory, we introduce the concept of chirality, a property of orderly asymmetry occurring frequently in nature as a natural phenomenon. The main result in this paper is that automorphism groups of regular and chiral thin residually connected geometries need to be $C$-groups in the regular case and $C^+$-groups in the chiral case.
Let $\boldsymbol{G}$ be an algebraic group of exceptional Lie type in characteristic $p$, $G=\boldsymbol{G}^σ$ its fixed-point subgroup under the action of a Steinberg endomorphism $σ$, and $\overline{G}$ an almost simple group with socle $G$. A maximal subgroup $M<\overline{G}$ is called non-generic if it is almost simple and its socle is not isomorphic to a group of Lie type in characteristic $p$. A finite subgroup $H$ of $\boldsymbol{G}$ is Lie primitive if it does not lie in any proper closed positive-dimensional subgroup of $\boldsymbol{G}$; it is Lie imprimitive if it lies in a positive-…
We study the subgroup structure of the semigroup of finitary tropical matrices under multiplication. We show that every maximal subgroup is isomorphic to the full linear automorphism group of a related tropical polytope, and that each of these groups is the direct product of the real numbers with a finite group. We also show that there is a natural and canonical embedding of each full rank maximal subgroup into the group of units of the semigroup of matrices over the tropical semiring with minus infinity. Our results have numerous corollaries, including the fact that every automorphism of a pr…
We give examples of finite string $C$-groups (the automorphism groups of abstract regular polytopes) that have irreducible characters of real Schur index $2$. This answers a problem of Monson concerning these groups.
Consider an infinite homogeneous tree $T_n$ of valence $n+1$, its group $Aut(T_n)$ of automorphisms, and the group $Hie(T_n)$ of its spheromorphisms (hierarchomorphisms), i.~e., the group of homeomorphisms of the boundary of $T_n$ that locally coincide with transformations defined by automorphisms. We show that the subgroup $Aut(T_n)$ is spherical in $Hie(T_n)$, i.~e., any irreducible unitary representation of $Hie(T_n)$ contains at most one $Aut(T_n)$-fixed vector. We present a combinatorial description of the space of double cosets of $Hie(T_n)$ with respect to $Aut(T_n)$ and construct a 'ne…
A graphical regular representation (GRR) of a group $G$ is a Cayley graph of $G$ whose full automorphism group is equal to the right regular permutation representation of $G$. In this paper we study cubic GRRs of $\mathrm{PSL}_{n}(q)$ ($n=4, 6, 8$), $\mathrm{PSp}_{n}(q)$ ($n=6, 8$), $\mathrm{P}Ω_{n}^{+}(q)$ ($n=8, 10, 12$) and $\mathrm{P}Ω_{n}^{-}(q)$ ($n=8, 10, 12$), where $q = 2^f$ with $f \ge 1$. We prove that for each of these groups, with probability tending to $1$ as $q \rightarrow \infty$, any element $x$ of odd prime order dividing $2^{ef}-1$ but not $2^{i}-1$ for each $1 \le i < ef$ t…
Guided by the ideas of chirality in the abstract polytope theory, the present paper aims to extend the concept to a more general setting of incidence geometries. The purpose of this paper is to explore the more general framework of thin residually connected chiral geometries and also to take this opportunity to look at the regular case in a more detailed way. We give characterisations of automorphism groups of regular and chiral thin residually connected geometries in the same spirit as Coxeter groups.
For the action of the outer automorphism group of the rank two free group on the corresponding variety of PSL(2,C) characters, two domains of discontinuity have been known to exist that are strictly larger than the set of Schottky characters. One is introduced by Bowditch in 1998 (followed by Tan, Wong and Zhang in 2008) and the other by Minsky in 2013. We prove that these two domains are equal. We then show that they are contained in the set of characters having what we call the bounded intersection property.