DOCSLIB.ORG

Michio Suzuki (1926–1998), Volume 46, Number 5

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Michio Suzuki (1926–1998), Volume 46, Number 5 mem-suzuki.qxp 3/8/99 10:09 AM Page 543 Michio Suzuki (1926–1998) Michael Aschbacher, Helmut Bender, Walter Feit, and Ronald Solomon Editor’s Note. Michio Suzuki, an early leader in the effort to classify finite simple groups, died May 31, 1998, in Tokyo at the age of seventy-one. Born October 2, 1926, in Japan, he obtained his Ph.D. from the University of Tokyo in 1952, with Shoukichi Iyanaga as official advisor. Suzuki’s teachers included also Yasuo Akizuki and Kenkichi Iwasawa. Suzuki assumed a faculty position at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, beginning the next year. In 1956–57 he took a leave of absence to work at Harvard University as research associate with Richard Brauer, with support from the National Science Foundation. He was a professor in the Center for Advanced Study at the University of Illinois from 1968 until his death. Suzuki held a postdoctoral fellowship in 1952–53 and a Guggenheim Fellowship in 1962–63, received the Acad- emy Prize from the Japan Academy in 1974 for his work in group theory, and was awarded an honorary doctoral degree from the University of Kiel, Germany, in 1991. He had visiting appointments at the University of Chicago (1960–61); the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton (1962–63, 1968–69, and spring 1981); the University of Tokyo (spring 1971); the Universities of Hokkaido, Osaka, and Tokyo (1981 and 1985); and the University of Padua, Italy (1994). Walter Feit order indicates why L(G × G) should always be much richer than L(G).) Michio Suzuki was one of the group of brilliant During the summer of 1952 he came to Ann young Japanese mathematicians who entered col- Arbor, attracted by the presence of Richard Brauer, lege after World War II. He received his Ph.D. in who was on the faculty there. Brauer was one of 1952 from the University of Tokyo in absentia. the very few senior mathematicians in the USA Prior to that he came to the University of Illinois who worked on questions concerning the structure in 1952 as a research fellow. He joined the faculty of finite simple groups. He and Brauer ran a sem- of the University in 1953, a position he held until inar that summer, which John Walter and I and oth- his sudden death. ers attended. I met him in that seminar while I was His thesis was in the theory of finite groups, and a graduate student at the University of Michigan. this subject was to occupy him for his whole ca- The theory of finite groups became a subject of reer. His early work included a study of the lattice intensive research during the next few years. One of all subgroups L(G) of a group G. He proved that reason was John Thompson’s thesis, which intro- if G is a noncyclic simple finite group and H is a duced new methods and ideas to the subject; an- finite group with L(G × G)=L(H × H), then G is other was the progress in character theory sparked isomorphic to H. At the time it was not known by Brauer and Suzuki. whether L(G) determines G up to isomorphism. It is necessary here to make some definitions. By way of background, an important theorem due However, by using the classification of the finite to Frobenius says that if H is a finite transitive per- simple groups, it is possible to prove the more nat- mutation group such that the subgroup fixing a let- ural result that if G and H are noncyclic finite sim- ter is nontrivial and no nonidentity element fixes ple groups with L(G)=L(H), then G is isomorphic two or more letters, then H contains a proper non- to H. (Consideration of a cyclic group G of prime trivial normal subgroup M such that every non- Walter Feit is professor of mathematics at Yale University. identity element x in M has centralizer CH (x) con- His e-mail address is [email protected]. tained in M. All known proofs of this theorem use Photographs courtesy of Koichiro Harada and Naoko character theory. We use this theorem to make a Suzuki. definition: A finite group H is a Frobenius group MAY 1999 NOTICES OF THE AMS 543 mem-suzuki.qxp 3/8/99 10:09 AM Page 544 with Frobenius kernel M if orem defines a one-to-one correspondence be- M is a proper nontrivial tween the set of irreducible characters of H that normal subgroup of H and do not have M in their kernel and a set of irre- if every nonidentity element ducible characters of G, the exceptional characters x in M has centralizer of G. The construction of the exceptional charac- CH (x) contained in M. ters makes it possible to derive information con- A subset S of a group G cerning their values on certain elements of G. In is a trivial intersection set in this way it is possible to construct a fragment of G (briefly, a T.I. set in G) if the character table of G. In some circumstances −1 ∩ ⊆{ } x Sx S 1 for every this fragment of the character table is enough to −1 6 x in G with x Sx = S. yield significant information about the group G. Suppose that G contains This formulation has one fundamental advan- a subgroup H that is a tage over Brauer’s original observation, in that it Frobenius group with an is not necessary to begin with an irreducible char- abelian Frobenius kernel M. acter of G. Rather, it implies the existence of ir- Assume that H is the nor- reducible characters of G with certain properties. malizer of M and M is a T.I. That is precisely the essence of this approach. Michio Suzuki, December 1994, set in G. Let |M| = m, and Manila, Phillipines. |H| = me. Then e | (m − 1) In 1957 Suzuki [Su3] showed that a group of odd and H has exactly order in which the centralizer of every nonidentity (m − 1)/e irreducible characters that do not con- element is abelian is solvable. If it is assumed that tain M in their kernel. Furthermore, they all have G is a counterexample of minimum order, then it degree e. is not difficult to show that G is simple and every Brauer used his characterization of characters maximal subgroup of G is a Frobenius group H to observe the following. and the hypotheses of the theorem are satisfied | | Let χ1 be an irreducible character of G, and let for H. Hypothesis (ii) follows from the fact that G 1 and 2 be irreducible characters of H which do is odd. Thus the theorem shows the existence of not have M in their kernel such that 1 and χ1 exceptional characters corresponding to H. Suzuki agree on M −{1}. Let χ2 be derived from χ1 by showed that every irreducible nonprincipal char- replacing 1 by 2 on the conjugates of M −{1}. acter of G is exceptional for some maximal sub- Then χ2 is an irreducible character of G. group of G. He was then able to reach a contra- He told me that he wrote to Suzuki about this diction to the assumed existence of G by using and immediately received by return mail Suzuki’s various properties of exceptional characters. alternative proof. (Presumably Suzuki had inde- This paper is a gem! At the time its importance pendently been thinking along these lines.) was not fully grasped, either by him or by others, In the above notation suppose that e =6 m − 1. as it seemed to be simply an elegant exercise in Then there are at least two faithful irreducible character theory. However, the result and the meth- characters 1, 2 of H that do not have M in their ods used had a profound impact on much suc- kernel. It is easily seen that ceeding work, and in particular it is an essential ingredient of the work by John Thompson and me k G − Gk2 k − k2 1 2 G = 1 2 H =2. on groups of odd order. In fact it was the first sig- nificant result on groups of odd order since Burn- This argument can be used to prove the following side’s work. Much of his later work had a more im- result due to Brauer and Suzuki. mediate impact and so overshadowed this paper, Theorem. Let H,M,m,e be as above. Assume that which is perhaps even today still not fully appre- ciated. (i) M is a T.I. set. By Thompson’s thesis M is always nilpotent if (ii) m − 1 =6 e. H is a Frobenius group as above. Soon thereafter Marshall Hall, John Thompson, and I were able to (iii) M is abelian. show that if G is a group of odd order in which Let {i} be the set of irreducible characters of H the centralizer of every nonidentity element is that do not have M in their kernel. Then there exist nilpotent, then G is solvable. The proof consisted a sign ε = 1 and a set {χi} of irreducible char- of two parts: The first part was an application of acters of G such that Thompson’s methods to reduce the problem to the case that every proper maximal subgroup of G is G − G − i j = ε(χi χj ) a Frobenius group whose kernel is a T.I. set in G. Unlike the abelian case, this was not easy to prove.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Divisibility of Projective Modules of Finite Groups
    View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by Elsevier - Publisher Connector Journal of Pure and Applied I Algebra 8 (1976) 183-185 0 North-Holland Publishing Company DIVISIBILITY OF PROJECTIVE MODULES OF FINITE GROUPS Walter FEIT * Department of Mathematics, Yale University, New Haven, Conn., U.S.A. Communicated by A. Heller Received 12 September 1975 1. Introduction Let H be a finite group. Let p be a prime and let F be an algebraically closed field of characteristic /Jo An F [H] module will always mean a finitely generated unital right F [H] module. If V is an F [H] module let (V) denote the isomorphism class of F [H] modules which contains V. Let &(H’) denote the representation ring of H with respect to F. Since the unique decomposition property holds (Krull-Schmidt Theorem), AF(H) is a commutative Z-algebra which is a free Z module and (V j + (W)= (If @ IV), (V)(W) = (lb Iv). For any F[H] module V let flv denote its Brauer character. The map sending V to /3v defines a homomorphism p of A#) onto the ring A:(H) of all integral linear combinations of irreducible Brauer characters of H. If ar E&(H) let p, denote the image of CYunder this map. Of course&(H) is isomorphic to the Grothendieck ring ofF[H]. Let U be a projective F[H] module and let V be any F[H]module. Then U @ I/ is projective. Thus P#), the subset of A&!?) spanned by all (U) with U projective, is an ideal of AF(H).
    [Show full text]
  • Chapter I, from Solvability of Groups of Odd Order, Pacific J. Math, Vol. 13, No
    Pacific Journal of Mathematics CHAPTER I, FROM SOLVABILITY OF GROUPS OF ODD ORDER, PACIFIC J. MATH, VOL. 13, NO. 3 (1963 WALTER FEIT AND JOHN GRIGGS THOMPSON Vol. 13, No. 3 May 1963 SOLVABILITY OF GROUPS OF ODD ORDER WALTER FEIT AND JOHN G. THOMPSON CHAPTER I 1. Introduction The purpose of this paper is to prove the following result: THEOREM. All finite groups of odd order are solvable. Some consequences of this theorem and a discussion of the proof may be found in [11]. The paper contains six chapters, the first three being of a general nature. The first section in each of Chapters IV and V summarizes the results proved in that chapter. These results provide the starting point of the succeeding chapter. Other than this, there is no cross reference between Chapters IV, V and VI. The methods used in Chapter IV are purely group theoretical. The work in Chapter V relies heavily on the theory of group characters. Chapter VI consists primarily of a study of generators and relations of a special sort. 2. Notation and Definitions Most of the following lengthy notation is familiar. Some comes from a less familiar set of notes of P. Hall [20], while some has arisen from the present paper. In general, groups and subsets of groups are denoted by German capitals, while group elements are denoted by ordinary capitals. Other sets of various kinds are denoted by English script capitals. All groups considered in this paper are finite, except when explicitly stated otherwise. Ordinary lower case letters denote numbers or sometimes elements of sets other than subsets of the group under consideration.
    [Show full text]
  • GROUPS WHICH HAVE a FAITHFUL REPRESENTATION of DEGREE LESS THAN ( P − 1/2)
    Pacific Journal of Mathematics GROUPS WHICH HAVE A FAITHFUL REPRESENTATION OF DEGREE LESS THAN . p − 1=2/ WALTER FEIT AND JOHN GRIGGS THOMPSON Vol. 11, No. 4 1961 GROUPS WHICH HAVE A FAITHFUL REPRESENTATION OF DEGREE LESS THAN [p - 1/2) WALTER FEIT AND JOHN G. THOMPSON 1. Introduction, Let G be a finite group which has a faithful representation over the complex numbers of degree n. H. F. Blichfeldt has shown that if p is a prime such that p > (2n + l)(n — 1), then the Sylow p-group of G is an abelian normal subgroup of G [1]. The pur- pose of this paper is to prove the following refinement of Blichfeldt's result. THEOREM 1. Let p be a prime. If the finite group G has a faithful representation of degree n over the complex numbers and if p > 2n + 1, then the Sylow p-subgroup of G is an abelian normal subgroup of G. Using the powerful methods of the theory of modular characters which he developed, R. Brauer was able to prove Theorem 1 in case p2 does not divide the order of G [2]. In case G is a solvable group, N. Ito proved Theorem 1 [4]. We will use these results in our proof. Since the group SL{2, p) has a representation of degree n = (p — l)/2, the inequality in Theorem 1 is the best possible. It is easily seen that the following result is equivalent to Theorem 1. THEOREM 2. Let A, B be n by n matrices over the complex numbers.
    [Show full text]
  • On Simple Groups of Order 2” L 3B - 7” a P
    View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by Elsevier - Publisher Connector JOURNAL OF ALGEBRA 25, 1x3-124 (1973) On Simple Groups of Order 2” l 3b - 7” a p LEO J. ALEX* SUNY, Collegeat Oneonta,Oneontn, New York 13820 Cornrn~~ica~e~ by Waher Fed Received November I, 1971 1. INTR~DUCT~ON 1.1 Let PSL(n, n) denote the projective special linear group of degree n over GF(q), the field with p elements. We prove the following theorem. THEOREM. Let G be a simple group of order 2” . 3b * 7” * p, a, b > 0, p a prime distinct from 2, 3 and 7. If the index of a Sylow p-subgroup of G in its normalaker i two, therz G is ~s~rn~ph~cto Mte of the proups, J?w5 5), p=q, 91, PSL[2,27) and PSL(3,4). The methods used to prove the theorem are natural extensions of the methods used by Brauer [2J to classify all simple groups of order 5 . 3” .2b. In Section 2, we discuss the degrees of the irreducible characters in B,(p), the principal p-block of G. Using elementary number theory, we show that there are nine possibilities for the equation relating these character degrees. In Section 3, we consider the possible character degrees for B,(p) obtained in Section 2. Using class algebra coefficients and simple group classification theorems we show that the degree equations 1 + 3 = 4, 1 + 8 = 9, 1 + 27 = 28, and 1 + 63 = 64 lead, respectively, to the groups PSL(2, 5), PSL(2,9), PSL(527) and PSL(3,4).
    [Show full text]
  • Lecture About Efim Zelmanov 1
    1 Lecture ab out E m Zelmanov E m Zelmanov erhielt die Fields-Medaille fur seine brilliante Losung des lange Zeit o enen Burnside-Problems. Dab ei handelt es sich um ein tie iegen- des Problem der Grupp entheorie, der Basis fur das mathematische Studium von Symmetrien. Gefragt ist nach einer Schrankefur die Anzahl der Sym- metrien eines Ob jektes, wenn jede einzelne Symmetriebeschrankte Ordnung hat. Wie alle b edeutenden mathematischen Resultate hab en auch jene von Zelmanov zahlreiche Konsequenzen. Darunter sind Antworten auf Fragen, b ei denen ein Zusammenhang mit dem Burnside-Problem bis dahin nicht einmal vermutet worden war. Vor der Losung des Burnside-Problems hatte Zelma- nov b ereits wichtige Beitrage zur Theorie der Lie-Algebren und zu jener der Jordan-Algebren geliefert; diese Theorien hab en ihre Ursprunge in Geometrie bzw. in Quantenmechanik. Einige seiner dort erzielten Ergebnisse waren fur seine grupp entheoritischen Arb eiten von ausschlaggeb ender Bedeutung. Auf diese Weise wird einmal mehr die Einheit der Mathematik dokumentiert, und es zeigt sich, wie sehr scheinbar weit auseinanderliegende Teilgebiete mitein- ander verbunden sind und einander b eein ussen. Auszug aus der Laudatio von Walter Feit. E m Zelmanov has received a Fields Medal for the solution of the restric- ted Burnside problem. This problem in group theory is to a large extenta problem in Lie algebras. In proving the necessary prop erties of Lie algebras, Zelmanov built on the work of many others, though he went far b eyond what had previously b een done. For instance, he greatly simpli ed Kostrikin's results which settled the case of prime exp onent and then extended these metho ds to handle the prime power case.
    [Show full text]
  • Certain Finite Linear Groups of Prime Degree
    JOURNAL OF ALGEBRA 32, 286-3 16 (1974) Certain Finite Linear Groups of Prime Degree DAVID A. SIBLEY* Department of Mathematics, Box 21.55 Yale Station, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520 Communicated by Walter Feit Received June 15, 1973 1. INTRODUCTION In studying finite linear groups of fixed degree over the complex field, it is convenient to restrict attention to irreducible, unimodular, and quasiprimitive groups. (For example, see [3], [9], and [12].) As is well known, any representa- tion is projectively equivalent to a unimodular one. Also., a representation which is not quasiprimitive is induced from a representation of a proper subgroup. (A quasiprimitive representation is one whose restriction to any normal subgroup is homogeneous, i.e., amultiple of one irreducible representa- tion of the subgroup.) Hence, these assumptions are not too restrictive. If one assumes also that the degree is an odd prime p, there is a natural division into cases, according to the order of a Sylow p-group P of such a group G. The following is known. (1) / P 1 = p. G is known for small values of p. See below. (2) 1 P j = p2. H ere G is G1 x 2, where 2 is the group of order p and G1 is a group from case (1). (See [3].) (3) 1P 1 = p3. G is known only for small values of p. (4) [ P / = p4. Here P contains a subgroup Q of index p which is normal in G, and G/Q is isomorphic to a subgroup of SL(2,p), See [7] and [lo], independently.
    [Show full text]
  • Lie Algebras and Classical Partition Identities (Macdonald Identities/Rogers-Ramanujan Identities/Weyl-Kac Character Formula/Generalized Cartan Matrix Lie Algebras) J
    Proc. Nati. Acad. Sci. USA Vol. 75, No. 2, pp. 578-579, February 1978 Mathematics Lie algebras and classical partition identities (Macdonald identities/Rogers-Ramanujan identities/Weyl-Kac character formula/generalized Cartan matrix Lie algebras) J. LEPOWSKY* AND S. MILNE Department of Mathematics, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut 06520 Communicated by Walter Feit, November 7,1977 ABSTRACT In this paper we interpret Macdonald's un- There is in general no such expansion for the unspecialized specialized identities as multivariable vector partition theorems numerator in Eq. 1. However, we have found a product ex- and we relate the well-known Rogers-Ramanujan partition identities to the Weyl-Kac character formula for an infinite- pansion for the numerator when all the variables e(-simple dimensional Euclidean generalized Cartan matrix Lie alge- roots) are set equal. Such a numerator is said to be principally bra. specialized. The reason for this definition is given elsewhere (J. Lepowsky, unpublished). To be more precise, when ao and In this paper we announce relationships between Lie algebra al are the simple roots of the infinite-dimensional GCM Lie theory and certain partition formulas which are important in algebra Al'), which is related to 9f(2, C), we have combinatorial analysis. Specifically, we interpret Macdonald's THEOREM 1. (Numerator Formula): Let X be a dominant unspecialized identities (1) as multivariable vector partition integral linearform and let V be the standard module for A1(l) theorems and we relate the well-known Rogers-Ramanujan with highest weight X. Then we have: partition identities to the Weyl-Kac character formula for an infinite-dimensional Euclidean generalized Cartan matrix x(V) E (-1)l(w)e(wp - p)/e()e(-ao)=e(-aj)=q (GCM) Lie algebra.
    [Show full text]
  • All of Mathematics Is Easy Once You Know How to Do It” Is from My Thesis Advisor, Walter Feit
    Talking About Teaching at The Ohio State University All of Mathematics Is Easy Once You Know How to Do It RON SOLOMON Professor of Mathematics College of Mathematical and Physical Sciences Editor’s note: This essay was originally delivered as an invited lecture at the Academy of Teaching’s “Mini-Conference on Scholarship, Teaching, and Best Practice,” on Friday, April 25, 2008. Some of the marks of the occasion have been retained in order to preserve the full spirit of the lecture. Thank you for the invitation to speak here. I am now nearing the end of my 37th year as a teacher of mathematics and my 33rd year as a faculty member at Ohio State. But this is the first time I have been forced to write a teaching statement or to articulate a philosophy of teaching. I must say that my only personal rules are: love the material that you are teaching; and care about the students you are teaching. The year for which I received a teaching award, I combined these rules with a huge investment of time. I divided my class of roughly 25 students into five groups and I required each group to come to my office for an hour each week. So I was putting in 8 contact hours per week for a 3-credit hour course. It worked, but I’m sure there must be an easier way to be an effective teacher. But it is hard to replace time and personal contact. I stumbled into the title of my lecture at the urging of Dr.
    [Show full text]
  • Chapter I, from Solvability of Groups of Odd Order, Pacific J. Math, Vol. 13, No
    Pacific Journal of Mathematics CHAPTER I, FROM SOLVABILITY OF GROUPS OF ODD ORDER, PACIFIC J. MATH, VOL. 13, NO. 3 (1963 WALTER FEIT AND JOHN GRIGGS THOMPSON Vol. 13, No. 3 May 1963 SOLVABILITY OF GROUPS OF ODD ORDER WALTER FEIT AND JOHN G. THOMPSON CHAPTER I 1. Introduction The purpose of this paper is to prove the following result: THEOREM. All finite groups of odd order are solvable. Some consequences of this theorem and a discussion of the proof may be found in [11]. The paper contains six chapters, the first three being of a general nature. The first section in each of Chapters IV and V summarizes the results proved in that chapter. These results provide the starting point of the succeeding chapter. Other than this, there is no cross reference between Chapters IV, V and VI. The methods used in Chapter IV are purely group theoretical. The work in Chapter V relies heavily on the theory of group characters. Chapter VI consists primarily of a study of generators and relations of a special sort. 2. Notation and Definitions Most of the following lengthy notation is familiar. Some comes from a less familiar set of notes of P. Hall [20], while some has arisen from the present paper. In general, groups and subsets of groups are denoted by German capitals, while group elements are denoted by ordinary capitals. Other sets of various kinds are denoted by English script capitals. All groups considered in this paper are finite, except when explicitly stated otherwise. Ordinary lower case letters denote numbers or sometimes elements of sets other than subsets of the group under consideration.
    [Show full text]
  • Collaborative Mathematics and the 'Uninvention' of a 1000-Page Proof
    436547SSS Social Studies of Science 42(2) 185 –213 A group theory of group © The Author(s) 2012 Reprints and permission: sagepub. theory: Collaborative co.uk/journalsPermissions.nav DOI: 10.1177/0306312712436547 mathematics and the sss.sagepub.com ‘uninvention’ of a 1000-page proof Alma Steingart Program in History, Anthropology, and Science, Technology, and Society, MIT, Cambridge, MA, USA Abstract Over a period of more than 30 years, more than 100 mathematicians worked on a project to classify mathematical objects known as finite simple groups. The Classification, when officially declared completed in 1981, ranged between 300 and 500 articles and ran somewhere between 5,000 and 10,000 journal pages. Mathematicians have hailed the project as one of the greatest mathematical achievements of the 20th century, and it surpasses, both in scale and scope, any other mathematical proof of the 20th century. The history of the Classification points to the importance of face-to-face interaction and close teaching relationships in the production and transformation of theoretical knowledge. The techniques and methods that governed much of the work in finite simple group theory circulated via personal, often informal, communication, rather than in published proofs. Consequently, the printed proofs that would constitute the Classification Theorem functioned as a sort of shorthand for and formalization of proofs that had already been established during personal interactions among mathematicians. The proof of the Classification was at once both a material artifact and a crystallization of one community’s shared practices, values, histories, and expertise. However, beginning in the 1980s, the original proof of the Classification faced the threat of ‘uninvention’.
    [Show full text]
  • On the Work of John Thompson
    Actes, Congrès intern, math., 1970. Tome 1, p. 15 à 16. ON THE WORK OF JOHN THOMPSON by R. BRAUER It is an honor to be called upon to describe to you the brilliant work for which John Thompson has just been awarded the Fields medal. The pleasure is tempered by the feeling that he himself could do this job much better. But perhaps I can say some things he would never say since he is a modest person. The central outstanding problem in the theory of finite groups today is that of determining the simple finite groups. One may say that this problem goes back to Galois. In any case, Camille Jordan must have been aware of it. Important classes of simple groups have been constructed as well as some individual types of such groups.- French mathematicians, Galois, Jordan, Mathieu, Chevalley, have been the pioneers in this work. In recent years, mathematicians of many different countries have joined. However, the general problem is unsolved. We do not know at all how close we are to knowing all simple finite groups. I shall not discuss the present situa- tion of the problem since this will be the topic of Feit's address at this congress. I may only say that up to the early 1960's, really nothing of real interest was known about general simple groups of finite order. I shall now describe Thompson's contribution. The first paper I have to mention is a joint paper by Walter Feit and John Thompson and, of course, Feit's part in it should not be overlooked.
    [Show full text]
  • Minimal 2-Local Geometries for the Held and Rudvalis Sporadic Groups
    JOURNAL OF ALGEBRA 79, 286-306 (1982) Minimal 2-Local Geometries for the Held and Rudvalis Sporadic Groups GEOFFREYMASON* Department of Mathematics, University of California, Santa Cruz, California 95064 AND STEPHEND. SMITH* Department of Mathematics, University of Illinois, Chicago, Illinois 60680 Communicated by Walter Feit Received November 2. 1981 The notion of a 24ocal geometry for a sporadic simple group is introduced by Ronan and Smith in [9]. In the case of the Held and Rudvalis groups, knowledge of 2-local subgroups is sufficient to suggest a 2-local diagram (exhibiting the chamber system, in the sense of Tits [ 13]), but no natural irreducible IF,-module realizing the geometry was provided. In this article, we show that He acts on such a geometry in 51 dimensions, and R in 28 dimensions. The proof is heavily computational. Our final remarks discuss some unusual features of these geometries. SOMESTANDARDARGUMENTS We list here some frequently-used arguments, which we will later refer to by a mnemonic rather than a reference number. For both groups to be considered, we start with a complex irreducible character x for the group, and by reduction mod 2 of an underlying module, obtain an IF,-module V for the group. If now g is any element of the group, we may use the value x(g) to compute the dimensions of C,(g) and [ V, g]. When g has odd order, V is just the direct product of these two subspaces; if * Both authors were partially supported by grants from the National Science Foundation. The work was partly done during visits by Mason at UICC and Smith at Caltech.
    [Show full text]