Mullineux defined an involution on the set of $e$-regular partitions of $n$. When $e=p$ is prime, these partitions label irreducible symmetric group modules in characteristic $p$. Mullineux's conjecture, since proven, was that this ``Mullineux map" described the effect on the labels of taking the tensor product with the one-dimensional signature representation. Counting irreducible modules fixed by this tensor product is related to counting irreducible modules for the alternating group $A_n$ in prime characteristic. In 1991, Andrews and Olsson worked out the generating function counting fixed points of Mullineux's map when $e=p$ is an odd prime (providing evidence in support of Mullineux's conjecture). In 1998, Bessenrodt and Olsson counted the fixed points in a $p$-block of weight $w$. We extend both results to arbitrary $e$, and determine the corresponding generating functions. When $e$ is odd but not prime the extension is immediate, while $e$ even requires additional work and the results, which are different, have not appeared in the literature.
We use Naito-Sagaki's work [S. Naito & D. Sagaki, J. Algebra 245 (2001) 395--412, J. Algebra 251 (2002) 461--474] on Lakshmibai-Seshadri paths fixed by diagram automorphisms to study the partitions fixed by Mullineux involution. We characterize the set of Mullineux-fixed partitions in terms of crystal graphs of basic representations of twisted affine Lie algebras of type $A_{2\ell}^{(2)}$ and of type $D_{\ell+1}^{(2)}$. We set up bijections between the set of symmetric partitions and the set of partitions into distinct parts. We propose a notion of double restricted strict partitions. Bijectio…
The Mullineux involution is a relevant map that appears in the study of the modular representations of the symmetric group and the alternating group. The fixed points of this map are certain partitions of particular interest. It is known that the cardinality of the set of these self-Mullineux partitions is equal to the cardinality of a distinguished subset of self-conjugate partitions. In this work, we give an explicit bijection between the two families of partitions in terms of the Mullineux symbol.
We exhibit a set of operators on pairs of domino tableaux of the same shape sending them to other such pairs with the same right tableau, in such a way that any two pairs with the same right tableau are conjugate by some composition of the operators. Using these operators we give explicit bases for the isotypic components of a classical Kazhdan-Lusztig left cell in terms of Kazhdan-Lusztig basis vectors.
This short article, dedicated to our beloved guru Philippe FLAJOLET (1948-2011), is a case-study in computer-generated combinatorial research, where the computer, all by itself, is using the transfer-matrix method to derive (rigorously!) rational generating functions for chromatic polynomials for infinite sequences of graphs generalizing the action of taking the Cartesian product with a path of length n, n=1,2,... .
We show that, for any fixed genus $g$, the ordinary generating function for the genus $g$ partitions of an $n$-element set into $k$ blocks is algebraic. The proof involves showing that each such partition may be reduced in a unique way to a primitive partition and that the number of primitive partitions of a given genus is finite. We illustrate our method by finding the generating function for genus $2$ partitions, after identifying all genus $2$ primitive partitions, using a computer-assisted search.
We present a short, direct proof of the fact that the generating function of all permutations of a fixed length $n\geq 4$ is divisible by $(1+z)^m$, where $m=\lfloor (n-2)/2 \rfloor$.
Starting with the irreducible triangulations of a fixed surface and splitting vertices, all the triangulations of the surface up to a given number of vertices can be generated. The irreducible triangulations have previously been determined for the surfaces S_0, S_1, N_1,and N_2. An algorithm is presented for generating the irreducible triangulations of a fixed surface using triangulations of other surfaces. This algorithm has been implemented as a computer program which terminates for S_1, S_2, N_1, N_2, N_3, and N_4. Thus the complete sets irreducible triangulations are now also known for S_2…
Monotone Hurwitz numbers were introduced by the authors as a combinatorially natural desymmetrization of the Hurwitz numbers studied in enumerative algebraic geometry. Over the course of several papers, we developed the structural theory of monotone Hurwitz numbers and demonstrated that it is in many ways parallel to that of their classical counterparts. In this note, we identify an important difference between the monotone and classical worlds: fixed-genus generating functions for monotone double Hurwitz numbers are absolutely summable, whereas those for classical double Hurwitz numbers are n…
We introduce two classes of morphisms over the alphabet $A=\{0,1\}$ whose fixed points contain infinitely many antipalindromic factors. An antipalindrome is a finite word invariant under the action of the antimorphism $\mathrm{E}:\{0,1\}^*\to\{0,1\}^*$, defined by $\mathrm{E}(w_1\cdots w_n)=(1-w_{n})\cdots(1-w_1)$. We conjecture that these two classes contain all morphisms (up to conjugation) which generate infinite words with infinitely many antipalindromes. This is an analogue to the famous HKS conjecture concerning infinite words containing infinitely many palindromes. We prove our conjectu…
We relate the generating functions of the dimensions of the Hochschild cohomology in any fixed degree of the symmetric groups with those of blocks of the symmetric groups. We show that the first Hochschild cohomology of a positive defect block of a symmetric group is non-zero, answering in the affirmative a question of the third author. To do this, we prove a formula expressing the dimension of degree one Hochschild cohomology as a sum of dimensions of centres of blocks of smaller symmetric groups. This in turn is a consequence of a general formula that makes more precise a theorem of our prev…
We evaluate Hankel determinants of matrices in which the entries are generating functions for paths consisting of up-steps, down-steps and level steps with a fixed starting point but variable end point. By specialisation, these determinant evaluations have numerous corollaries. In particular, one consequence is that the Hankel determinant of Motzkin prefix numbers equals 1, regardless of the size of the Hankel matrix.
The mean values of non-homogeneously parameterized generating exponential are obtained and investigated for the periodic Heisenberg XX model. The norm-trace generating function of boxed plane partitions with fixed volume of their diagonal parts is obtained as N-particles average of the generating exponential. The generating function of self-avoiding walks of random turns vicious walkers is obtained in terms of the circulant matrices that leads to generalizations of the Ramus's identity. Under various specifications of the generating exponential, the N-particles averages arise for a set of inco…
Let $m,k$ be fixed positive integers. Determining the generating function for the number of tilings of an $m\times n$ rectangle by $k\times 1$ rectangles is a long-standing open problem to which the answer is only known in certain special cases. We give an explicit formula for this generating function in the case where $m<2k$. This result is used to obtain the generating function for the number of tilings of an $m\times n \times k$ box with $k\times k\times 1$ bricks.
In this paper, we study a family of generating functions whose coefficients are polynomials that enumerate partitions in lower order ideals of Young's lattice. Our main result is that this family satisfies a rational recursion and are therefore rational functions. As an application, we calculate the asymptotic behavior of the cardinality of lower order ideals for the ``average" partition of fixed length and give a homological interpretation of this result in relation to Grassmannians and their Schubert varieties.
We call $i$ a fixed point of a given sequence if the value of that sequence at the $i$-th position coincides with $i$. Here, we enumerate fixed points in the class of restricted growth sequences. The counting process is conducted by calculation of generating functions and leveraging a probabilistic sampling method.
We provide a search method for Legendre pairs of composite length based on generating binary matrices with fixed row and column sums from compressed, complementary integer vectors. This approach yielded the first construction of a Legendre pair of length $77$, as well as the first exhaustive generation of Legendre pairs of length $55$.
The flag-major index "fmaj" and the classical length function "$\ell$" are used to construct two $q$-analogs of the generating polynomial for the hyperoctahedral group~$B_n$ by number of positive and negative fixed points (resp. pixed points). Specializations of those $q$-analogs are also derived dealing with signed derangements and desarrangements, as well as several classical results that were previously proved for the symmetric group.
In this paper we prove that among the permutations of length n with i fixed points and j excedances, the number of 321-avoiding ones equals the number of 132-avoiding ones, for all given i,j<=n. We use a new technique involving diagonals of non-rational generating functions. This theorem generalizes a recent result of Robertson, Saracino and Zeilberger, for which we also give another, more direct proof.
We prove that for any fixed d the generating function of the projection of the set of integer points in a rational d-dimensional polytope can be computed in polynomial time. As a corollary, we deduce that various interesting sets of lattice points, notably integer semigroups and (minimal) Hilbert bases of rational cones, have short rational generating functions provided certain parameters (the dimension and the number of generators) are fixed. It follows then that many computational problems for such sets (for example, finding the number of positive integers not representable as a non-negative…
The order complex of inclusion poset $PF_n$ of Borel orbit closures in skew-symmetric matrices is investigated. It is shown that $PF_n$ is an EL-shellable poset, and furthermore, its order complex triangulates a ball. The rank-generating function of $PF_n$ is computed and the resulting polynomial is contrasted with the Hasse-Weil zeta function of the variety of skew-symmetric matrices over finite fields.
We extend Stanley's work on alternating permutations with extremal number of fixed points in two directions: first, alternating permutations are replaced by permutations with a prescribed descent set; second, instead of simply counting permutations we study their generating polynomials by number of excedances. Several techniques are used: Desarmenien's desarrangement combinatorics, Gessel's hook-factorization and the analytical properties of two new permutation statistics "DEZ" and "lec". Explicit formulas for the maximal case are derived by using symmetric function tools.
For $σ\in S_n$, let $D(σ) = \{i : σ_{i} > σ_{i+1}\}$ denote the descent set of $σ$. The length of the permutation is the number of inversions, denoted by $inv(σ) = \big | \{(i,j) : i<j, σ_i > σ_j\} \big |$. Define an unusual quadratic statisitic by $baj(σ) = \sum_{i \in D(σ)} i (n-i)$. We present here a bijective proof of the identity $\sum_{{σ\in S_n} \atop {σ(n) = k}} q^{baj(σ) - inv(σ)} = \prod_{i=1}^{n-1} {1-q^{i (n-i)} \over {1-q^i}}$ where $k$ is a fixed integer.
We present the generating function for the numbers of isomorphism classes of coverings of the two-dimensional sphere by the genus $g$ compact oriented surface not ramified outside of a given set of $m+1$ points in the target, fixed ramification type over one point, and arbitrary ramification types over the remaining $m$ points. We present the genus expansion of this generating function and prove, that the generating function of coverings of genus $0$ satisfies some system of differential equations. We show that this generating function is a specialization of the function from paper \cite{GJ} a…
We prove that for any fixed $n$, and for most permutation patterns $q$, the number $\textup{Av}_{n,\ell}(q)$ of $q$-avoiding permutations of length $n$ that consist of $\ell$ skew blocks is a monotone decreasing function of $\ell$. We then show that this implies that for most patterns $q$, the generating function $\sum_{n\geq 0} \textup{Av}_n(q)z^n$ of the sequence $\textup{Av}_n(q)$ of the numbers of $q$-avoiding permutations is not rational. Placing our results in a broader context, we show that for rational power series $F(z)$ and $G(z)$ with nonnegative real coefficients, the relation $F(z…
We examine two different ways of encoding a counting function, as a rational generating function and explicitly as a function (defined piecewise using the greatest integer function). We prove that, if the degree and number of input variables of the (quasi-polynomial) function are fixed, there is a polynomial time algorithm which converts between the two representations. Examples of such counting functions include Ehrhart quasi-polynomials, vector partition functions, integer points in parametric polytopes, and projections of the integer points in parametric polytopes. For this last example, th…
We give a generating function for the fully commutative affine permutations enumerated by rank and Coxeter length, extending formulas due to Stembridge and Barcucci--Del Lungo--Pergola--Pinzani. For fixed rank, the length generating functions have coefficients that are periodic with period dividing the rank. In the course of proving these formulas, we obtain results that elucidate the structure of the fully commutative affine permutations.
We study the distribution of the statistics 'number of fixed points' and 'number of excedances' in permutations avoiding subsets of patterns of length 3. We solve all the cases of simultaneous avoidance of more than one pattern, giving generating functions enumerating these two statistics. Some cases are generalized to patterns of arbitrary length. For avoidance of one single pattern we give partial results. We also describe the distribution of these statistics in involutions avoiding any subset of patterns of length 3. The main technique is to use bijections between pattern-avoiding permutati…
Let V be an infinite matrix with rows and columns indexed by the positive integers, and entries in a field F. Suppose that v_{i,j} only depends on i-j and is 0 for |i-j| large. Then V^n is defined for all n, and one has a "generating function" G=\sum a_{1,1}(V^n)z^n. Ira Gessel has shown that G is algebraic over F(z). We extend his result, allowing v_{i,j} for fixed i-j to be eventually periodic in i rather than constant. This result and some variants of it that we prove will have applications to Hilbert-Kunz theory.
We use a continued fraction approach to compare two statistical ensembles of quadrangulations with a boundary, both controlled by two parameters. In the first ensemble, the quadrangulations are bicolored and the parameters control their numbers of vertices of both colors. In the second ensemble, the parameters control instead the number of vertices which are local maxima for the distance to a given vertex, and the number of those which are not. Both ensembles may be described either by their (bivariate) generating functions at fixed boundary length or, after some standard slice decomposition, …
In this paper we study abstract shapes of $k$-noncrossing, $σ$-canonical RNA pseudoknot structures. We consider ${\sf lv}_k^{\sf 1}$- and ${\sf lv}_k^{\sf 5}$-shapes, which represent a generalization of the abstract $π'$- and $π$-shapes of RNA secondary structures introduced by \citet{Giegerich:04ashape}. Using a novel approach we compute the generating functions of ${\sf lv}_k^{\sf 1}$- and ${\sf lv}_k^{\sf 5}$-shapes as well as the generating functions of all ${\sf lv}_k^{\sf 1}$- and ${\sf lv}_k^{\sf 5}$-shapes induced by all $k$-noncrossing, $σ$-canonical RNA structures for fixed $n$. By m…
We study the number $p(n,t)$ of partitions of $n$ with difference $t$ between largest and smallest parts. Our main result is an explicit formula for the generating function $P_t(q) := \sum_{n \ge 1} p(n,t) \, q^n$. Somewhat surprisingly, $P_t(q)$ is a rational function for $t>1$; equivalently, $p(n,t)$ is a quasipolynomial in $n$ for fixed $t>1$. Our result generalizes to partitions with an arbitrary number of specified distances.
An inverted semistandard Young tableau is a row-standard tableau along with a collection of inversion pairs that quantify how far the tableau is from being column semistandard. Such a tableau with precisely $k$ inversion pairs is said to be a $k$-inverted semistandard Young tableau. Building upon earlier work by Fresse and the author, this paper develops generating functions for the numbers of $k$-inverted semistandard Young tableau of various shapes $λ$ and contents $μ$. An easily-calculable generating function is given for the number of $k$-inverted semistandard Young tableau that "standardi…
In this paper we look at polynomials arising from statistics on the classes of involutions, $I_n$, and involutions with no fixed points, $J_n$, in the symmetric group. Our results are motivated by F. Brenti's conjecture which states that the Eulerian distribution of $I_n$ is log-concave. Symmetry of the generating functions is shown for the statistics $des,maj$ and the joint distribution $(des,maj)$. We show that $exc$ is log-concave on $I_n$, $inv$ is log-concave on $J_n$ and $des$ is partially unimodal on both $I_n$ and $J_n$. We also give recurrences and explicit forms for the generating fu…
The article studies a class of generalized factorial functions and symbolic product sequences through Jacobi type continued fractions (J-fractions) that formally enumerate the divergent ordinary generating functions of these sequences. The more general definitions of these J-fractions extend the known expansions of the continued fractions originally proved by Flajolet that generate the rising factorial function, or Pochhammer symbol, $(x)_n$, at any fixed non-zero indeterminate $x \in \mathbb{C}$. The rational convergents of these generalized J-fractions provide formal power series approximati…
We explore the computational complexity of computing pure Nash equilibria for a new class of strategic games called integer programming games with difference of piecewise linear convex payoffs. Integer programming games are games where players' action sets are integer points inside of polytopes. Using recent results from the study of short rational generating functions for encoding sets of integer points pioneered by Alexander Barvinok, we present efficient algorithms for enumerating all pure Nash equilibria, and other computations of interest, such as the pure price of anarchy, and pure threa…
We have derived the perimeter generating function of a model of punctured staircase polygons in which the internal staircase polygon is rotated by a 90degree angle with respect to the outer staircase polygon. In one approach we calculated a long series expansion for the problem and found that all the terms in the generating function can be reproduced from a linear Fuchsian differential equation of order 4. We then solved this ODE and found a closed form expression for the generating function. This is a highly unusual and most fortuitous result since ODEs of such high order very rarely permit a…
This article is an extensive study of partitions with fixed number of odd and even-indexed odd parts. We use these partitions to generalize recent results of C. Savage and A. Sills. Moreover, we derive explicit formulas for generating functions for partitions with bounds on the largest part, the number of parts and with a fixed value of BG-rank or with a fixed value of alternating sum of parts. We extend the work of C. Boulet, and as a result, obtain a four-variable generalization of Gaussian binomial coefficients. In addition we provide combinatorial interpretation of the Berkovich-Warnaar id…
In this note, we consider ordered partitions of integers such that each entry is no more than a fixed portion of the sum. We give a method for constructing all such compositions as well as both an explicit formula and a generating function describing the number of $k$-tuples whose entries are bounded in this way and sum to a fixed value $g$.
Non-overlapping codes are a set of codewords in $\bigcup_{n \ge 2} \mathbb{Z}_q^n$, where $\mathbb{Z}_q = \{0,1,\dots,q-1\}$, such that, the prefix of each codeword is not a suffix of any codeword in the set, including itself; and for variable-length codes, a codeword does not contain any other codeword as a subword. In this paper, we investigate a generic method to generalize binary codes to $q$-ary for $q > 2$, and analyze this generalization on the two constructions given by Levenshtein (also by Gilbert; Chee, Kiah, Purkayastha, and Wang) and Bilotta, respectively. The generalization on the…
We study nearest-neighbors walks on the two-dimensional square lattice, that is, models of walks on $\mathbb{Z}^2$ defined by a fixed step set that is a subset of the non-zero vectors with coordinates 0, 1 or $-1$. We concern ourselves with the enumeration of such walks starting at the origin and constrained to remain in the quarter plane $\mathbb{N}^2$, counted by their length and by the position of their ending point. Bousquet-Mélou and Mishna [Contemp. Math., pp. 1--39, Amer. Math. Soc., 2010] identified 19 models of walks that possess a D-finite generating function; linear differential equ…
A \Def{composition} of a positive integer $n$ is a $k$-tuple $(ł_1, ł_2, \dots, ł_k) \in \Z_{> 0}^k$ such that $n = ł_1 + ł_2 + \dots + ł_k$. Our goal is to enumerate those compositions whose parts $ł_1, ł_2, \dots, ł_k$ avoid a fixed arithmetic sequence. When this sequence is given by the even integers (i.e., all parts of the compositions must be odd), it is well known that the number of compositions is given by the Fibonacci sequence. A much more recent theorem says that when the parts are required to avoid all multiples of a given integer $k$, the resulting compositions are counted by a seq…
Let $ζ$ be a fixed nonzero element in a finite field $\mathbb F_q$ with $q$ elements. In this article, we count the number of pairs $(A,B)$ of $n\times n$ matrices over $\mathbb F_q$ satisfying $AB=ζBA$ by giving a generating function. This generalizes a generating function of Feit and Fine that counts pairs of commuting matrices. Our result can be also viewed as the point count of the variety of modules over the quantum plane $xy=ζyx$, whose geometry was described by Chen and Lu.
