Let $N$ be a normal subgroup of a finite group $G$. For a faithful $N$-set $Δ$, applying the university embedding theorem one can construct a faithful $G$-set $Ω$. In this short note, it is proved that if the $2$-closure of $N$ in $Ω$ is equal to $N$, then the $2$-closure of $N$ in $Δ$ is also equal to $N$; in addition, it is proved that any abelian normal subgroup of a finite totally $2$-closed group is cyclic; finally, it is proved that if a finite nilpotent group is a direct of two nilpotent subgroups where the two factors have coprime orders and both of them are totally 2-closed then G is totally $2$-closed. As corollaries, several well-known results on finite totally 2-closed groups are reproved in more simple ways.
A group $G$ is said to be totally $2$-closed if in each of its faithful permutation representations, say on a set $Ω$, $G$ is the largest subgroup of $\mathrm{Sym}(Ω)$ which leaves invariant each of the $G$-orbits for the induced action on $Ω\times Ω$. We prove that there are precisely $47$ finite totally $2$-closed groups with trivial Fitting subgroup. Each of these groups is a direct product of pairwise non-isomorphic sporadic simple groups, with the direct factors coming from the Janko groups $\mathrm{J}_1, \mathrm{J}_3$ and $\mathrm{J}_4$, together with $\mathrm{Ly}, \mathrm{Th}$ and the M…
We prove a result on the asymptotic proportion of randomly chosen pairs of permutations in the symmetric group $S_n$ which "invariably" generate a nonsolvable subgroup, i.e., whose cycle structures cannot possibly both occur in the same solvable subgroup of $S_n$. As an application, we obtain that for a large degree "random" integer polynomial $f$, reduction modulo two different primes can be expected to suffice to prove the nonsolvability of $Gal(f/\mathbb{Q})$.
For a positive integer $k$, a group $G$ is said to be totally $k$-closed if in each of its faithful permutation representations, say on a set $Ω$, $G$ is the largest subgroup of $\operatorname{Sym}(Ω)$ which leaves invariant each of the $G$-orbits in the induced action on $Ω\times\dots\times Ω=Ω^k$. We prove that every abelian group $G$ is totally $(n(G)+1)$-closed, but is not totally $n(G)$-closed, where $n(G)$ is the number of invariant factors in the invariant factor decomposition of $G$. In particular, we prove that for each $k\geq2$ and each prime $p$, there are infinitely many finite abe…
We introduce a new product for permutation groups. It takes as input two permutation groups, M and N, and produces an infinite group M [X] N which carries many of the permutational properties of M. Under mild conditions on M and N the group M [X] N is simple. As a permutational product, its most significant property is the following: M [X] N is primitive if and only if M is primitive but not regular, and N is transitive. Despite this remarkable similarity with the wreath product in product action, M [X] N and M Wr N are thoroughly dissimilar. The product provides a general way to build exotic …
Various connections between the theory of permutation groups and the theory of topological groups are described. These connections are applied in permutation group theory and in the structure theory of topological groups. The first draft of these notes was written for lectures at the conference Totally disconnected groups, graphs and geometry in Blaubeuren, Germany, 2007.
We determine the semi-regular subgroups of the 2-transitive permutation groups PGL(2,n), PSL(2,n), PGU(3,n), PSU(3,n), Sz(n) and Ree(n) with n a suitable power of a prime number p.
A totally symmetric set is a subset of a group such that every permutation of the subset can be realized by conjugation in the group. The (non-)existence of large totally symmetric sets obstruct homomorphisms, so bounds on the sizes of totally symmetric sets are of particular use. In this paper, we prove that if a group has a totally symmetric set of size $k$, it must have order at least $(k+1)!$. We also show that with three exceptions, $\{(1 \; i)\mid i = 2,\ldots,n\} \subset S_n$ is the only totally symmetric set making this bound sharp; it is thus the largest totally symmetric set relative…
In this short note we present a simple combinatorial trick which can be effectively applied to show the non--existence of sharply transitive sets of permutations in certain finite permutation groups.
Let $(Ω, \leq)$ be a totally ordered set. We prove that if $\Aut(Ω,\leq)$ is transitive and satisfies the same first-order sentences as $\Aut(\RR,\leq)$ (in the language of lattice-ordered groups) then $Ω$ and $\RR$ are isomorphic ordered sets. This improvement of a theorem of Gurevich and Holland is obtained as one of many consequences of a study of centralizers and coloured chains associated with certain transitive subgroups of $\Aut(Ω,\leq)$.
In a 2004 article, Udo Baumgartner and George Willis used ideas from the structure theory of totally disconnected, locally compact groups to achieve a better understanding of the contraction group U_f associated with an automorphism f of such a group G, assuming that G is metrizable. (Recall that U_f consists of all group elements x such that f^n(x) tends to the identity element as n tends to infinity). Recently, Wojciech Jaworski showed that the main technical tool of the latter article remains valid in the non-metrizable case. He asserted without proof that, therefore, all results from that …
A totally symmetric set is a finite subset of a group for which any permutation of the elements can be realized by conjugation in the ambient group. Such sets are rigid under homomorphisms, and so exert a great deal of control over the algebraic structure. In this paper we introduce a more general perspective on total symmetry, and formulate a notion of "irreducibility" for totally symmetric sets in the general linear group. We classify irreducible totally symmetric sets, as well as those of maximal cardinality.
We show that the Hurwitz action is "as transitive as possible" on reflection factorizations of Coxeter elements in the well-generated complex reflection groups $G(d, 1, n)$ (the group of $d$-colored permutations) and $G(d, d, n)$.
Let G be a finite group, let p be a prime number, and let K be a field of characteristic 0 and k be a field of characteristic p, both large enough. In this note we state explicit formulae for the primitive idempotents of K\otimes pp_k(G), where pp_k(G) is the ring of p-permutation kG-modules.
These are the lecture notes of a 2-hour mini-course on Lie groups over local fields presented at the "Workshop on Totally Disconnected Groups, Graphs and Geometry" at the Heinrich-Fabri-Institut Blaubeuren in May 2007. The goal of the notes is to provide an introduction to p-adic Lie groups and Lie groups over fields of formal Laurent series, with an emphasis on relations to the structure theory of totally disconnected, locally compact groups. In particular, they contain a discussion of the scale, tidy subgroups and contraction groups for automorphisms of Lie groups over local fields. Special …
For q > 2, Carlitz proved that the group of permutation polynomials (PPs) over F_q is generated by linear polynomials and x^{q-2}. Based on this result, this note points out a simple method for representing all PPs with full cycle over the prime field F_p, where p is an odd prime. We use the isomorphism between the symmetric group S_p of p elements and the group of PPs over F_p, and the well-known fact that permutations in S_p have the same cycle structure if and only if they are conjugate.
Let S be a subsemigroup of an abelian torsion-free group G. If S is a positive cone of G, then all C*-algebras generated by faithful isometrical non-unitary representations of S are canonically isomorphic. Proved by Murphy, this statement generalized the well-known theorems of Coburn and Douglas. In this note we prove the reverse. If all C*-algebras generated by faithful isometrical non-unitary representations of S are canonically isomorphic, then S is a positive cone of G. Also we consider G = Z\times Z and prove that if S induces total order on G, then there exist at least two unitarily not …
