Home

Syllabus

Lecture Topics

Homework

Policies


Math 6270: Theory of Groups, Fall 2017


Lecture Topics


Date
What we discussed/How we spent our time
Aug 28
Prerequisites. Syllabus. Text.
Aug 30
We discussed Lagrange's Theorem, Cauchy's Theorem (2 proofs), and Sylow's First Theorem (2 proofs).
Sep 1
We defined the commutator, and discussed abelianness and solvability.
Sep 6
We discussed this handout.
Sep 8
We discussed verbal and marginal subgroups, and solvable groups.
Sep 11
We discussed H, S, P properties of the commutator and started discussing nilpotent groups.
Sep 13
We showed that the descending central series and the ascending central series of a nilpotent group have the same length, and that this length is a lower bound on the length of any central series. We discussed $T(n,\mathbb F)$ and $U(n,\mathbb F)$, and explained why $U(n,\mathbb F)\lhd T(n,\mathbb F)$, $T(n,\mathbb F)/U(n,\mathbb F)$ $\cong$ $(\mathbb F^{\times})^n$, $U(n,\mathbb F)$ is nilpotent and $T(n,\mathbb F)$ is not, and, if $|\mathbb F| = p^k$, then $U(n,\mathbb F)$ is a Sylow $p$-subgroup of $T(n,\mathbb F)$. We discussed commutator collection for nilpotent groups.
Sep 15
We discussed periodicity, local finiteness, varieties of groups, Burnside's problem, and consequences of a commutator collection. We began a proof of a theorem characterizing finite nilpotent groups in several ways.
Sep 18
We finished the proof of a theorem characterizing finite nilpotent groups. We defined radicals and residues, the Fitting subgroup and the Frattini subgroup. We proved Fitting's Theorem. We showed that if $G$ is a finite solvable group, then $C_G(\textrm{Fit}(G))\leq \textrm{Fit}(G)$, hence there is a short exact sequence $1\to Z(F)\to G\to G/Z(F)\to 1$ with $G/Z(F)$ embeddable in $\textrm{Aut}(F)$. This yields a finite-to-one correspondence between finite solvable groups and finite nilpotent groups.
Sep 20
$\Phi(G)$ is the set of nongenerators, and also the intersection of maximal subgroups of $G$. We computed $\Phi(G)$ for small groups. We explained why $\Phi(G)$ is independent of $\textrm{Fit}(G)$ in general, but $\Phi(G)\leq \textrm{Fit}(G)$ for finite groups. We gave most of the proof that $\textrm{Fit}(G)/\Phi(G)$ is a semisimple abelian group when $G$ is finite.
Sep 22
We discussed modular lattices, and proved that the modular law holds in subgroup lattices in the following form: If $A, B, C\leq G$, $A\leq B$, and $AC=CA$, then $B\cap (AC) = A(B\cap C)$. We used this to prove that if $N\lhd G$, then $\Phi(N)\lhd \Phi(G)$. We proved the Burnside Basis Theorem. We stated the Dedekind-Baer Theorem on groups whose subgroups are all normal.
Sep 25
We discussed some elements of the proof of the Dedekind-Baer Theorem on groups whose subgroups are all normal. We defined regular $p$-group, and proved that a 2-step nilpotent group satisfies $(xy)^n = x^ny^n[x,y]^{-\binom{n}{2}}$.
Sep 27
We discussed special and extraspecial $p$-groups. We explained that if $G$ is extraspecial, then the commutator induces a symplectic form $[,]:G/G'\times G/G'\to Z(G)$. We stated the classification of finite dimensional symplectic forms, and used this to deduce that $G$ has subgroups $N_i$, $i=1,\ldots,n$, each of order $p^3$, such that $G$ is the central product of these factors.
Sep 29
We completed the sketch of the classification of extraspecial $p$-groups.
Oct 2
We started on Chapter 8. Group determinant. Properties of characters.
Oct 4
We explained how to find the character table for any abelian group, and for $A_4$. We defined representations (of groups and categories). We defined permutation representations, linear representations and $G$-modules.
Oct 6
We talked about changing language between representations, actions, modules. We defined permutation and linear representations, and introduced the group algebra.
Oct 9
We showed that $$\textrm{Hom}_{{\mathbb C}-\textrm{alg}}(\mathbb C[G],\mathbb A)\cong \textrm{Hom}_{\textrm{Grp}}(G,\mathbb A^{\times}).$$ We started on the proof that if $G$ is a finite group, then $${\mathbb C}[G]\cong M_{d_1}({\mathbb C})\times \cdots\times M_{d_1}({\mathbb C}).$$ Se far we have shown that $\mathbb C[G]$ has finitely many simple modules, all of which are finite dimensional.
Oct 11
We started the proof that if $A$ is a finite dimensional $\mathbb C$-algebra and $V$ is a simple $A$-module, then the associated representation $\rho\colon A\to End_{\mathbb C}(V)$ is surjective.
Oct 13
Schur's Lemma.
Oct 16
We discussed Galois connections, and in particular we determined the Galois connection between a $k$-vector space $V$ and the $k$-algebra $E:={\textrm End}_k(V)$ defined by the annihilation relation $\rho = \{(\alpha,v)\in E\times V\;|\;\alpha(v)=0\}$. We proved that the closed subsets of $V$ are exactly the subspaces and the closed subsets of $E$ are the left ideals. We derived the corollaries: (0) the left ideal lattice of $E$ is dually isomorphic to the subspace lattice of $V$, (1) $E$ is a simple $k$-algebra, (2) $E$ has a unique isotype of simple module, namely $V$.
Oct 18
We proved that if if $V$ is a finite dimensional complex vector space and $\mathbb A\subseteq \textrm{End}_{\mathbb C}(V)$ acts irreducibly on $V$, then every subspace of $V$ is closed in the Galois connection defined by the relation $\rho=\{(\alpha,v)\in \mathbb A\times V\;|\;\alpha(v)=0\}$.
Oct 20
We proved the Jacobson Density Theorem. We defined the Jacobson radical and showed that if $\mathbb A$ is a finite dimensional $\mathbb C$-algebra, then $\mathbb A/J\cong \prod M_{d_i}(\mathbb C)$. We explained why $J=\textrm{rad}(\mathbb A)$ has no complement in the left ideal lattice of $\mathbb A$. I stated that the next theorem to be proved, Maschke's Theorem, which will show that if $G$ is a finite group and $k$ is a field satisfying $\textrm{char}(k)\not\mid |G|$, then the left ideal lattice of ${\mathbb A}$ is complemented. Overall conclusion: $\mathbb C[G]\cong \prod M_{d_i}(\mathbb C)$.
Oct 23
We proved Maschke's Theorem.
Oct 25
We started proving some of the basic properties of characters. (Items (1)-(7) of the Oct 2 handout.)
Oct 27
We explained why the character table of $G$ determines the set of normal ubgroups of $G$, hence one can determine from the table if $G$ is simple or solvable. We explained how to determine the character table of $G/N$ from the character table of $G$ and from the set $N$.
Oct 30
We justified (10)-(12), (14)-(17) of the Oct 2 handout on properties of characters. We also began a discussion of the tensor product.
Nov 1
We justified (18) of the Oct 2 handout on properties of characters.
Nov 3
We justified (19), (20) of the Oct 2 handout on properties of characters.
Nov 6
We justified (21), (22) of the Oct 2 handout on properties of characters.
Nov 8
We discussed row and column orthogonality.
Nov 10
We proved items (25)-(28). We defined algebraic integers, and stated a theorem characterizing them as e-values of integer matrices and also as those $z\in\mathbb C$ that generate subrings whose underlying additive group is f.g.
Nov 13
We proved items (29)-(32).
Nov 15
We started these notes.
Nov 17
We finished the Nov 15 notes.
Nov 27
We began discussing the extension problem, $E: 1\to N\to G\to Q\to 1$. We reviewed the left split case, the right split case, and the unsplit case. The unsplit case reduced to understanding a multiplication on $Q\times N$ defined by $(q_1,n_1)\star(q_2,n_2) = (q_1q_2,\gamma(q_1,q_2)\varphi(q_2)(n_1)n_2)$ where $\varphi\colon Q\to \textrm{Aut}(N)$ and $\gamma\colon Q\times Q\to N$ are functions.
Nov 29
We discussed how the extension problem simplifies when the kernel, $N$, is abelian.
Dec 1
We defined $Z^2(Q,N), B^2(Q,N)$, and $H^2(Q,N)$. We calculated these groups when $|Q|=2$. We explained why, for example, $H^2(\mathbb Z_2,\mathbb Z)$ has size $2$ when $\mathbb Z_2$ acts trivially on $\mathbb Z$. In this case, the two elements correspond to the two abelian extensions of $\mathbb Z$ by a $2$-element group, namely the split extension $0\to \mathbb Z\to \mathbb Z_2\times \mathbb Z\to \mathbb Z_2\to 0$ and the nonsplit extension $0\to \mathbb Z\stackrel{\times 2}{\to} \mathbb Z\to \mathbb Z_2\to 0$.
Dec 4
We defined $Z^n(Q,N), B^n(Q,N)$, and $H^n(Q,N)$, and described some interpretations for $H^n(Q,N)$ when $n=0, 1, 2, 3$. We proved that is $|Q|=m$ and $N$ satisfies $x^n=1$ for relatively prime $m$ and $n$, then $H^2(Q,N)=0$. (The proof works for $H^n(Q,N)=0$, too.)
Dec 6
We finished the proof of the Schur-Zassenhaus Theorem. We defined "coprime action" and "cohomologically trivial".
Dec 8
Kevin Berg and Athena Sparks gave talks.
Dec 11
Mark Pullins and Ruofan Li gave talks.
Dec 13
Sarah Salmon and Steve Weinell gave talks.
FCQ's.