Algebra Grupos PDF

Algebra: highlights We also define g 0 “ e and g ń “ pg ´1 qn for n ą 0.
Copyright 2017
c Eduardo Tengan & Sérgio Tadao Martins The existence of inverse says that the usual “cancellation law” holds, but now we need be a
bit more careful, and pay attention to the side being canceled since the operation may not be
Learning Mathematics is not much different from learning a new language: it is a highly non- commutative. For example, the “left cancellation” a ¨ x “ a ¨ y ùñ x “ y follows by multiplying
linear and non-sequential process, relying much more on examples and everyday experiences a ¨ x “ a ¨ y by a´1 on the left:
rather than on grammar and vocabulary lessons. But, alas, pedagogy aside, writing is linear,
and this summary (the first chapter of the Algebra trilogy of groups, rings, fields) is our attempt a ¨ x “ a ¨ y ùñ a´1 ¨ pa ¨ xq “ a´1 ¨ pa ¨ yq
to string together into some coherent narrative all topics in Group Theory we believe current ðñ pa´1 ¨ aq ¨ x “ pa´1 ¨ aq ¨ y (associativity)
undergraduate Math students should be acquainted with. Throughout we emphasize its relations ðñ e ¨ x “ e ¨ y ðñ x “ y pe is the identity element)
with other subjects such as Linear Algebra, Geometry and Topology.
We would greatly appreciate receiving comments and corrections, be they grammatic/sspellling See lemma 7 for other “basic moves” which hold in any group.
errors, or other interesting examples or suggestions of better ways to present the material.
Example 2. In the following table, n P N and X ‰ H is a set.
)
Groups
17
Name Set Product Identity Inverse of g Abelian?
20
Basic definitions and properties Trivial
teu eë“e e e´1 “ e yes
9,
group
The following definition distills the “nice” properties of sets with a binary operation, such as
r2
pQˆ , ¨q and pZ, `q. Integers Z ` 0 ´g yes
Nonzero
be
1
def
Qˆ “ Q r t0u ¨ 1 g ´1 “ yes
Definition 1. A group pG, ¨q is a pair consisting of a set G and a binary operation, called rationals g
m
product,
Even/Odd teven, oddu ` even g yes
ve
GˆGÑG
vector sum zero vector opposite vector
pa, bq ÞÑ a ¨ b, Rn Rn yes
No
` p0, . . . , 0q ´g
which satisfies the following three axioms: def á “ 12 ´ a if
Integers Z{12Z “ sum mod
M
(i) (Associativity) For any a, b, c P G, 0 a ‰ 0, and yes
mod 12 t0, 1, 2, . . . , 11u 12
´0 “ 0
ST
pa ¨ bq ¨ c “ a ¨ pb ¨ cq
General n ˆ n real
matrix identity inverse matrix no if
(ii) (Existence of identity element) There exists an element e P G such that, for all a P G, linear invertible
& product ¨ matrix In g ´1 ně2
group matrices
aë“eä“a
composi-
T
Symmetric bijections identity inverse no if
(iii) (Existence of inverse) Given a P G, there exists an element a´1 P G such that tion of
group g : X ãÑ
ÑX function id function g ´1 |X| ě 3
(E
functions ˝
a ¨ a´1 “ a´1 ¨ a “ e
T
Some brief remarks on the above examples:

If, in addition to the above three axioms, the group pG, ¨q also satisfies
AF
• The first example, the so-called trivial group, is the smallest group in the whole universe
(iv) (Commutativity) For any a, b P G, (the empty set has no group structure: any group has at least the identity element);
a¨b“bä
DR
• The sum mod 12 is the sum in a 12-hour clock: denoting the twelve hours by the symbols
then pG, ¨q is called abelian1 . 0, 1, 2, . . . , 11 we have for instance 4 ` 11 “ 3 as 4 ` 11 “ 15 corresponds to 3 o’clock.
We can easily generalize this example to any positive integer n. Define the set
Associativity means that parentheses are not needed to indicate the precedence of operations.
For example, the sum in Z is associative, while the subtraction is not: def
Z{nZ “ t0, 1, 2, . . . , n ´ 1u
pa ` bq ` c “ a ` pb ` cq for any a, b, c P Z whose elements are symbols r, one for each integer 0 ď r ă n, standing for the “hours”
however pa ´ bq ´ c ‰ a ´ pb ´ cq in general on an n-hour clock. The sum mod n is then defined as follows:
#
Therefore in a group we can simply write x ¨ y ¨ z ¨ w ¨ x ¨ y instead of some hideous expression def a`b if a ` b ă n
ppx ¨ py ¨ zqq ¨ pw ¨ xqq ¨ y. Moreover associativity let us define powers of an element g P G: for an a`b “
a ` b ´ n if a ` b ě n
integer n ą 0,
def
gn “ g ¨ g ¨ ... ¨ g
loooooomoooooon For example, if n “ 5 we get the following “clock” and corresponding addition table (the
n times
entry in the a-th row and b-th column is a ` b):
1 after the Norwegian mathematician Niels Henrik Abel (1802–1829), after whom the prestigious Abel prize is also named.
AMS Open Math Notes: Works in Progress; Reference # OMN:201711.110718; Last Revised: 2017-11-29 17:17:51
` 0 1 2 3 4 • One frequently writes 1 instead of e to denote the identity element of a group. It is also
0
0 0 1 2 3 4 common to denote the trivial group t1u simply by 1.
1 1 2 3 4 0 4 1 • In case the binary operation is clear from the context, we refer to the set G itself as a
2 2 3 4 0 1 group. Thus we will often say that Z is a group, leaving the operation ` implicit.
3 3 4 0 1 2
3 2 • For abelian groups, one usually employs additive instead of multiplicative notation: one
4 4 0 1 2 3 writes ` for the binary operation, 0 for the identity element and ´g for the inverse of
It is easy to see that 0 is the identity element of pZ{nZ, `q (thus 0 is its own inverse), g. In this additive notation, powers of an element g are written as multiples ng (n P Z)
and that n ´ a is the inverse of a for a “ 1, 2, . . . , n ´ 1. Associativity in Z{nZ is slightly thereof.
more difficult to check directly: the idea is to interpret the symbol a as “the remain-
der in the division of a by n” (in the sum mod n, we subtract multiples of n in order From two or more groups, it is possible to build new groups:
to obtain a number between 0 and n ´ 1). With this interpretation, we can check that
pa ` bq ` c “ a ` pb ` cq since both sides represent the remainder in the division of a ` b ` c Definition 4. Let Gi (i P I) be any family of groups. We may define a (group) product in the
)
17
by n. Cartesian product ź
Later, in the section Quotients (see in particular the example 141), we will see that the G“ Gi
20
group structure of pZ{nZ, `q is induced from that of pZ, `q. We will extend the interpre- iPI
tation of a as the remainder in the division of a by n to all integers a P Z, so that by componentwise multiplication, using the products in each Gi : given two “vectors” pai qiPI and
9,
a “ b ðñ a, b leave the same remainder in the division by n pbi qiPI in G, set
r2
def
ðñ n | a ´ b pn divides a ´ bq pai qiPI ¨ pbi qiPI “ pai ¨ bi qiPI
be
The set G together with this product is a group, called the direct product of the Gi . The identity
Not only will this make it easier to check the group axioms, but it will also allow us to
element of G is the “vector” pei qiPI whose components are the identity elements ei of each Gi ;
m
define the sum in Z{nZ more succinctly, via the mnemonic relation
the inverse of pai qiPI is given by pa´1
i qiPI .
ve
def
a`b “ a`b
Example 5. We keep the notation of the example 2.
No
For example, in Z{5Z
• pRn , `q is the direct product of n copies of pR, `q.
12 “ 2 “ ´3 and 3`4“3`4“7“2
M
• The addition table of Z{2Z ˆ Z{3Z is given below. Note that there now are two types of
• The last but one group is called general linear group (notation: GLn pRq). All group elements, denoted by the same symbol n, but belonging to different groups: the red ones in
ST
axioms are easy to check, perhaps the least obvious being the associativity: let A “ Z{2Z “ t0, 1u, where the sum is carried out mod 2 (i.e., Z{2Z is essentially the even/odd
paij q1ďi,jďn , B “ pbij q1ďi,jďn and C “ pcij q1ďi,jďn be three elements in GLn pRq. group), and the blue ones in Z{3Z “ t0, 1, 2u, where the sum carried out mod 3 (i.e., the
To show the associativity, all we have to check is that the pi, jq-th entry in the products & sum is that of a 3-hour clock).
ApBCq and pABqC are the same, which in fact happens:
p0, 0q p1, 0q p0, 1q p1, 1q p0, 2q p1, 2q
T
`
pr,jq-th entry in BC pi,sq-th entry in AB
(E
hkkkkkkkkkikkkkkkkkkj
´ ÿ ¯
hkkkkkkkkkikkkkkkkkkj
´ ÿ ¯ p0, 0q p0, 0q p1, 0q p0, 1q p1, 1q p0, 2q p1, 2q
ÿ ÿ ÿ
air ¨ brs csj “ air brs csj “ air brs ¨csj p1, 0q p1, 0q p0, 0q p1, 1q p0, 1q p1, 2q p0, 2q
T
1ďrďn 1ďsďn 1ďr,sďn 1ďsďn 1ďrďn

looooooooooooooooooomooooooooooooooooooon looooooooooooooooooomooooooooooooooooooon p0, 1q p0, 1q p1, 1q p0, 2q p1, 2q p0, 0q p1, 0q
AF
pi,jq-th entry in ApBCq pi,jq-th entry in pABqC

p1, 1q p1, 1q p0, 1q p1, 2q p0, 2q p1, 0q p0, 0q
• The last group is called the symmetric group of X (notation SX ). Again, only associa- p0, 2q p0, 2q p1, 2q p0, 0q p1, 0q p0, 1q p1, 1q
DR
tivity can raise some doubt, but we only need to stare at the commutative diagram
p1, 2q p1, 2q p0, 2q p1, 0q p0, 0q p1, 1q
p0, 1q
g˝h ś
• If each group in the family Gi (i P I) is abelian, the direct product iPI Gi is also abelian.
h g f
X X X X
f ˝g
Remark 6. Although less frequently used in practice, there are other algebraic structures which
are more general than a group. A pair pG, ¨q given by a set G and a binary operation ¨ : GˆG Ñ G
for a few seconds to be convinced that f ˝ pg ˝ hq “ pf ˝ gq ˝ h as both sides represent the is a
same function x ÞÑ f pgphpxqqq, obtained by successively applying the arrows h, g, f in
that order. (i) semigroup if the operation ¨ is associative.
See the section Groups that appear in Nature for more examples and details. (ii) monoid if ¨ is associative and has identity element.
Remark 3. • Due to laziness, a ¨ b is usually written ab. Thus
• In the definition of a group, the identity and inverse elements in axioms (ii) and (iii) are pG, ¨q group ùñ pG, ¨q monoid ùñ pG, ¨q semigroup
unique (see lemma 7). That is, in the universe of mathematical objects we have
semigroups Example 10. In a group G, a “ a´1 holds for all a P G. Show that G is necessarily abelian.3
monoids
groups Proof. Given x, y P G, we want to show that xy “ yx. We have
p1q p2q p3q

xy “ pxyq´1 “ y ´1 x´1 “ yx
Here, we used the hypothesis a “ a´1 for a “ xy in (1), the mirror rule in (2), and the hypothesis
a “ a´1 in (3) once more, this time for a “ y, a “ x.
Elementary Properties
From the group axioms, it is easy to check that the “usual arithmetic properties” hold in a general
group: Translations and “shuffle”
)
17
Despite its innocuous appearance, the following lemma is often used to explore the “inner sym-
Lemma 7 (Basic moves). Let G be a group, and g, x, y P G be any elements. metry” of a group.
20
(i) (Uniqueness of the identity element) There is a unique element e P G such that e ¨ g “
9,
g ¨ e “ g for all g P G; Lemma 11 (Shuffle). Let G be a group, and let g P G. The following functions are
r2
(ii) (Uniqueness of the inverse of an element) Given g P G, there exists a single element bijections:
g ´1 P G such that g ¨ g ´1 “ g ´1 ¨ g “ e;
λg : G ãÑ
ÑG pleft translation by gq
be
(iii) (Left/Right cancellation) x ÞÑ gx
m
gx “ gy ùñ x “ y and xg “ yg ùñ x “ y and
ve
(iv) (Mirror rule) pxyq´1 “ y ´1 x´1 . ρg : G ãÑ
ÑG pright translation by gq
No
(v) (Telescopic product) pgxg ´1 qn “ gxn g ´1 for all n P Z. x ÞÑ xg
(vi) g m ¨ g n “ g m`n and pg m qn “ g mn for all m, n P Z.
M
Proof. It is easy to check directly that λg´1 (left translation by g ´1 ) is the inverse of λg ; simi-
ST
Proof. We do not want to waste too much time here, since verifications of this kind are like house larly, ρg´1 is the inverse of ρg .
chores: they have to be done but definitely are not the main purpose of life (let alone Algebra!).
As an example, we will prove only (ii), leaving the rest as an exercise2 . &
Given g P G, let h and h1 be two inverses for g; let us show that h “ h1 . We have
T
p1q p2q p3q p4q p5q Example 12 (Abelian Lagrange). Let G be a finite abelian group with n “ |G| elements.
h “ e ¨ h “ ph1 gq ¨ h “ h1 ¨ pghq “ h1 ¨ e “ h1
(E
Then g n “ e for all g P G.

Here equalities (1) and (5) follow from the fact that e is the identity of G; (2) and (4), from the
fact that h1 and h are inverses of g; and (3), from associativity.
T
Solution Let G “ tx1 , x2 , . . . , xn u (with g “ xi for some 1 ď i ď n). Since λg : G ãÑ

Ñ G is a
AF
bijection, and G is abelian,

Remark 8. For an arbitrary group G, pa¨bqn ‰ an ¨bn (a, b P G, n P Z) in general; for exam-
DR
ple, if n “ 2 then pabq2 “ abab is usually different from a2 b2 “ aabb. However pa ¨ bqn “ an ¨ bn λg px1 q ¨ λg px2 q ¨ . . . ¨ λg pxn q “ x1 ¨ x2 ¨ . . . ¨ xn
does hold if G is abelian.
as the factors on the left and on the right are the same up to permutation. Rewriting the left
Let us see how to use the above properties to solve problems about groups. hand side using the definition of λg , and rearranging the order of the factors, we get
Example 9. In a group G, an element g P G satisfies g 5 “ e; g 7 “ e. Show that g “ e. gx1 ¨ . . . ¨ gxn “ x1 ¨ . . . ¨ xn ðñ g n x1 ¨ . . . ¨ xn “ x1 ¨ . . . ¨ xn

ðñ g n “ e (cancellation)
Solution The trick is to write 1 as a Z-linear combination of 5 and 7, for example 7¨3´5¨4 “ 1.
Then
g “ g 7¨3´5¨4 “ pg 7 q3 ¨ pg 5 q´4 “ e3 ¨ e´4 “ e
Similarly one shows that if g n “ g m “ e with gcdpm, nq “ 1 then g “ e (see lemma 27, which
shows that if gcdpm, nq “ 1 then there exist x, y P Z such that mx ` ny “ 1). Later (corollary 53) we will see that the above result holds for any finite group, abelian or not.
2 like a chore indeed: do one of them and sweep the rest under the rug/reader
3 For example G can be the even/odd group or a direct product of copies thereof.
Conjugation (iii) H is closed under taking inverses: a P H ùñ a´1 P H.
Definition 13. Given a group pG, ¨q and an element g P G, the function Note that the subset H does deserve the name “subgroup” since by (ii) the operation ¨ of G
restricts to a binary operation ¨ : H ˆ H Ñ H, and makes the pair pH, ¨q into a bona fide group:
κg : G Ñ G
• Associativity: is inherited from G;
x ÞÑ gxg ´1
• Existence of identity element: e P H; indeed, there exists a P H by (i), hence a´1 P H by
is called conjugation by g. We say that κg pxq “ gxg ´1 is the conjugate of x by g. (iii), and therefore by (ii) e “ a ¨ a´1 belongs to H;
• Existence of inverse: follows from (iii).
Two important identities are given by the
Example 18. We keep the notation of the example 2.
Lemma 14 (Conjugate identities). Let G be a group, and let g, h P G. For any x, y P G,
• we have the inclusions of additive groups Z ď Q ď R ď C.
κg px ¨ yq “ κg pxq ¨ κg pyq (1) • t˘1u ď Qˆ and t˘1, ˘iu ď Cˆ (here Cˆ “ C r t0u with the usual product).
)
` ˘
κh κg pxq “ κhg pxq (2) • The subset 2Z of Z consisting of all even numbers is a subgroup of Z; more generally,
17
for any d P Z, the subset dZ consisting of all multiples of d is a subgroup of Z: dZ ď Z.
gxyg ´1 pgxg ´1 q pgyg ´1 q hpgxg ´1 qh´1
20
Proof. The identities follow directly from “ ¨ and “ Conversely, example 23 shows that any subgroup of pZ, `q has this form.
phgqxphgq´1 (using the mirror rule).
• The set of integral powers of 2
9,
Identity (1) says that conjugation by g preserves the
˘n product in G (i.e., κg : G Ñ G is a morphism, def
! 1 1 1 )
2Z “ t2n | n P Zu “ . . . , , , , 1, 2, 4, 8, . . .
r2
`
see definition 58). In particular, κg pxn q “ κg pxq for n P N, that is, gxn g ´1 “ pgxg ´1 qn , which 8 4 2
is nothing other than the telescopic product of lemma 7.
is a subgroup of Qˆ .
be
g x,
Remark 15. Some authors denote κg pxq by so that identity (2) can be rewritten as the • If V is a vector subspace of Rn , then V ď Rn .
m
more friendly “rule of the exponent” h pg xq “ hg x. But this is very cumbersome to type (except • The subset of GL2 pRq given by
perhaps on an Arabic or Hebrew keyboard), so we will continue to use κg to denote conjugation
ve
"ˆ ˙ *
by g. def 1 ˚
U T2 pRq “ P GL2 pRq
No
0 1
Example 16. In a group G, a, b P G satisfy a3 “ e, aba´1 “ b2 . Show that b7 “ e.
is an abelian subgroup of GL2 pRq. Here, ˚ denotes an arbitrary element of R.
M
Solution The natural idea is to explore conjugation: aba´1 “ b2 says that conjugating b by • The set of rotation matrices
a we obtain b2 , i.e., κa pbq “ b2 . Conjugating the last equality by a, and using the conjugate
ST
"ˆ ˙ˇ *
identities (1) and (2), we get def cos θ ´ sin θ
SO2 pRq “ ˇθPR
ˇ
sin θ cos θ
˘2
κa pbq “ b2 ùñ κa pκa pbqq “ κa pb2 q ðñ κa2 pbq “ κa pbq
`
` ˘2
& is a subgroup of GL2 pRq, called special orthogonal group (see example 98 for the geo-
ðñ κa2 pbq “ b2 ðñ a2 ba´2 “ b4 metric meaning of SO2 pRq).
T
• The set of matrices
That is, by conjugating b by a2 we get b4 .
(E
We may repeat the above steps, conjugating "ˆ ˙ˇ *

a2 ba´2 “ b4 by a: SU2 pCq “
def α ´β ˇ
ˇ α, β P C, |α|2 ` |β|2 “ 1
β α
T
a3 ba´3 “ ab4 a´1

is a subgroup of the multiplicative group GL2 pCq (2 ˆ 2 complex invertible matrices). The
AF
“ paba´1 q4 ptelescopic productq group SU2 pCq is called special unitary group (see example 100 for more details).
“ pb2 q4 “ b8 psince κa pbq “ b2 q
DR
Example 19 (Unit circle). The set of complex numbers with absolute value 1
That is, conjugating b by a3 we obtain b8 : a3 ba´3 “ b8 . But by hypothesis a3 “ e, therefore def
S 1 “ tz P C | |z| “ 1u “ teiθ P C | θ P Ru
b “ b8 ; canceling b, we get e “ b7 .
forms a subgroup of pCˆ , ¨q. Geometrically, this group is a circle of radius 1 centered at the
origin.
Subgroups
z “ eiα “ cos α ` i sin α
Intuitively speaking, given a group G, a subgroup H of G is a subset that is a group with the
same operation of G. Formally:
α
Definition 17. Given a group pG, ¨q, a subset H Ď G is a subgroup of G (notation: H ď G) if ´α
it satisfies:
(i) H ‰ H; z ´1 “ z “ eíα “ cos α ´ i sin α
(ii) H is closed under taking products: a, b P H ùñ a ¨ b P H; and
Writing z, w P S 1 in polar form Example 24 (Putnam). Let G be a finite subgroup of the linear group GLn pCq (see example 2).
Let M be the sum of all matrices in G. Show that det M P Z.
z “ eiα “ cos α ` i sin α and w “ eiβ “ cos β ` i sin β
we note that, in order to multiply z and w, all we need to do is add their arguments α and β: Solution Let G “ tA1 , . . . , At u, so that M “ A1 ` ¨ ¨ ¨ ` At . Let us use the shuffle lemma 11.
zw “ eipα`βq “ cospα ` βq ` i sinpα ` βq Taking the square of M ,
Observe that if z P S 1 then z ´1 “ z (complex conjugation) since zz “ |z|2 “ 1. Hence the M 2 “ pA1 ` A2 ` ¨ ¨ ¨ ` At q ¨ pA1 ` A2 ` ¨ ¨ ¨ ` At q
operation z ÞÑ z ´1 is a reflection about the real axis. “ A1 ¨ pA1 ` A2 ` ¨ ¨ ¨ ` At q ` ¨ ¨ ¨ ` At ¨ pA1 ` A2 ` ¨ ¨ ¨ ` At q
Example 20 (Quaternion Group). The quaternion group Q8 is the subgroup of the multi- shuffle
“ pA1 ` A2 ` ¨ ¨ ¨ ` At q ` ¨ ¨ ¨ ` pA1 ` A2 ` ¨ ¨ ¨ ` At q
plicative group GL2 pCq (or SU2 pCq, see example 18) composed of the 8 matrices
" ˆ ˙ ˆ ˙ ˆ ˙ ˆ ˙* “t¨M
def 1 0 i 0 0 1 0 i
Q8 “ ˘ ,˘ ,˘ ,˘ ď GL2 pCq
0 1 0 í ´1 0 i 0 And from M 2 “ t ¨ M we get pdet M q2 “ tn ¨ det M ùñ det M “ 0 or det M “ tn with t “ |G|.
)
Thus in both cases det M P Z, as wished.
We usually write 1 as a shorthand for the identity matrix, and
17
ˆ ˙ ˆ ˙ ˆ ˙
def i 0 def 0 1 def 0 i
20
i “ j “ k “
0 í ´1 0 i 0
Definition 25. Let G be a group, and S Ď G be any subset. The subgroup generated by S
so that Q8 “ t˘1, ˘i, ˘j, ˘ku. The following relations hold: (notation: xSy) is the smallest subgroup of G containing S, that is, xSy is the intersection of all
9,
subgroups containing S (see example 21):
i2 “ j2 “ k2 “ ´1 ij “ ´ji “ k
r2
def
č
jk “ ´kj “ i ki “ ík “ j xSy “ H
be
One way to remember them is to think of i, j, k as “imaginary units” (such as i P C) that HďG
HĚS
“anti-commute” and satisfy a “cyclic multiplication table”
m
For typographical reasons (and also laziness), in case S “ tg1 , . . . , gn u is finite we write
ve
j xg1 , . . . , gn y instead of the uglier notation xtg1 , . . . , gn uy.
No
i
Explicitly, xSy is the subgroup consisting of all (finite, of course) products x1 x2 . . . xn where each
k
xi is either an element of S or the inverse of an element of S (we will write xi P S ˘ ):
M
ˇ
This group originates from the unit group of the quaternion ring H.
(
xSy “ x1 x2 . . . xn ˇ xi P S ˘ , n P N
ST
Example 21. Let pG, ¨q be any group. To see this, call the set on the right P . Note first that if H ď G and H Ě S then H Ě P , since
• teu ď G and G ď G. H is closed under products and inverses. Thus, in order to check that xSy “ P , it suffices to
• If G is abelian and H ď G then H is abelian.
& show that P ď G, since then P will be the smallest subgroup of G containing S. In fact, P ‰ H
(e P P even when S “ H, remember that the empty product is equal to e by definition); P is
• If Hi ď G pi P Iq is any family of subgroups of G then
T
clearly closed under products; it is also closed under inverses by the mirror rule:
(E
č
Hi ď G px1 x2 . . . xn q´1 “ x´1 ´1 ´1
pxi P S ˘ q
n . . . x 2 x1 P S
iPI
T
Example 22 (Center of a group). Given any group G, the subset In particular, if G is abelian, given g1 , . . . , gr then
AF
def
def
ZpGq “ tz P G | gz “ zg for all g P Gu xg1 , . . . , gr y “ g1Z . . . grZ “ tg1n1 . . . gn
nr
| ni P Zu
consisting of the elements commuting with all elements of G is a subgroup of G, called center
DR
Example 26. The subgroup of the multiplicative group Qˆ generated by 2 and 3 is the subgroup
of G (the notation ZpGq stems from the German word Zentrum). Note that ZpGq “ G if and consisting of fractions whose numerators and denominators have no prime factors other than 2
only if G is abelian. and 3:
Example 23 (Subgroups of Z). We have already seen (example 18) that, given an integer x2, 3y “ 2Z ¨ 3Z “ t2m ¨ 3n | m, n P Zu
d ě 0, dZ ď Z. Conversely, every H ď Z has this form. If H is trivial, then H “ dZ with
d “ 0. Otherwise, H has a positive integer: since H is nontrivial, there is an h ‰ 0 in H; but Example 27 (Bézout). Let a, b P Z, and let d “ gcdpa, bq (when a “ b “ 0 we set d “ 0). In
then h P H and ´h P H, and one of them will be positive. Let d ą 0 be the smallest positive pZ, `q,
integer in H; we claim that H “ dZ. xa, by “ Za ` Zb “ Zd “ xdy
In fact, since H is closed under sums and opposites, dZ Ď H; for the other inclusion, we must In fact, from example 23 we know that xa, by “ xty for some integer t ě 0. To conclude that
show that any h P H is divisible by d, so nothing more natural than to divide h by d, for heaven’s t “ d, all we need to show is that (for a ‰ 0 or b ‰ 0)
sake! We get quotient q and remainder r with 0 ď r ă d so that
• d | t: from t P xa, by there are x, y P Z such that
h “ dq ` r ðñ r “ h ´ dq P H (since h P H and dZ Ď H)
ax ` by “ t
Since d is the smallest positive integer in H, from 0 ď r ă d and r P H we conclude that r “ 0,
as required. Since d “ gcdpa, bq divides the left side, d divides the right side as well.
• t ď d: from a, b P xty ðñ t | a and t | b, we have that t is a common divisor of a, b, Proof. It suffices to show that
thus t ď d. (i) if g d “ e for some integer d ą 0 then |xgy| ď d;
More generally, given a1 , . . . , an P Z, the same proof shows that (ii) if |xgy| ă 8 then there exists d P N such that 0 ă d ď |xgy| and g d “ e.
xa1 , . . . , an y “ xgcdpa1 , . . . , an qy In fact, if we let t “ mintd P N | g d “ e, d ą 0u, (i) shows that |xgy| ď t while (ii) shows that
|xgy| ě t. Note that these inequalities hold even if one of the terms is infinite: if |xgy| “ 8, (i)
Example 28. The subgroup of pR2 , `q generated by the vectors p1, 0q and p0, 1q is the set of all shows that g d ‰ e for all d ą 0, that is, t “ 8. Similarly if g d ‰ e for every integer d ą 0, (ii)
Z-linear combinations of these vectors, that is, shows that |xgy| “ 8.
Z2 “ Z ¨ p1, 0q ` Z ¨ p0, 1q “ tpa, bq P R2 | a, b P Zu We now turn to the proofs of (i) and (ii).
(i) Suppose that g d “ e with d ą 0. Then the powers of g “cycle4 after d steps”, as in the
Geometrically, Z2 is a lattice in R2 :
d-gon below, where each vertex is multiplied by g (respectively by g ´1 ) as we go clockwise
(respectively counterclockwise):
)
e “ g kd
17
g “ g kd`1
g d´1 “ g kd`pd´1q
20
9,
g d´2 “ g kd`pd´2q g 2 “ g kd`2 (k P Z)
r2
g 3 “ g kd`3
be
g 4 “ g kd`4
m
Example 29 (Derived subgroup). Let G be a group. The commutator of a, b P G is the
Thus xgy “ g Z “ te, g, g 2 , . . . , g d´1 u has at most d elements (exactly d if e, g, . . . , g d´1 are
ve
element
def pairwise distinct).
ra, bs “ aba´1 b´1 P G
No
def
Intuitively, ra, bs “measures” the lack of commutativity between a, b; the element ra, bs is trivial (ii) If t “ |xgy| is finite then the t ` 1 powers of g
if and only if a, b commute:
e, g, g 2 , . . . , g t P xgy
M
ra, bs “ e ðñ ab “ ba
ST
The commutator subgroup or derived subgroup of G (notation: rG, Gs or G1 ) is the subgroup cannot be all distinct, so there are integers i, j with 0 ď i ă j ď t such that
of G generated by its commutators. Note that since the inverse of a commutator is a commutator g i “ g j ðñ g jí “ e. Therefore d “ j ´ i satisfies 0 ă d ď t and g d “ e.
(by the mirror rule, ra, bs´1 “ paba´1 b´1 q´1 “ bab´1 a´1 “ rb, as), G1 consists of all products &
of commutators: ˇ
rG, Gs “ G1 “ ra1 , b1 s . . . ran , bn s ˇ ai , bi P G, n P N
( The previous lemma allows us to make the following
T
Note that G is abelian if and only if rG, Gs is trivial. Definition 32. Let G be a group, and let g P G.
(E
def
Later, we will use the derived subgroup to construct the abelianization Gab “ G{rG, Gs of G (i) The order |G| of G is the cardinality of G (i.e., the number of elements in G).
(see example 161), which, in a sense, is the “largest” abelian group that can be obtained from
T
(ii) The order of an element g P G is the order of the cyclic subgroup xgy. Equivalently, the
G.
order of g is the smallest integer d ą 0 such that g d “ e (or infinity if such d does not
AF
exist).
Order and cyclic groups
DR
Items (i) and (ii) in the proof of the above lemma show that the powers of g cycle with period
Definition 30. A group G is called cyclic if it can be generated by a single element g P G: exactly equal to its order. Thus we immediately get the following
def
G “ xgy “ g Z “ tg n | n P Zu
Lemma 33 (Least divides). Let G be a group, and g P G be an element of finite order
(in general, there are several generators g, see theorem 39).
d ą 0. Then
More generally, given any group G, the subgroup xgy ď G is called the cyclic subgroup generated
g n “ e ðñ d | n pn P Zq
by g.
Since any two powers of g commute, the cyclic subgroup xgy is always abelian, even when the
group G itself is not. In particular, cyclic groups are always abelian. Example 34. We keep the notation of example 2.
• If |X| “ n, the elements of the symmetric group SX are the permutations of the n ele-
Lemma 31. Let G be a group, and g P G. Then ments in X, so its order is |SX | “ n!.
|xgy| “ mintd P N | g d “ e, d ą 0u • Z is an infinite cyclic group: Z “ x1y or Z “ x´1y.
4 whence the name cyclic group
• The even/odd group is cyclic of order 2, generated by the element odd. Example 36. Let G be a group, and let a, b P G be two commuting elements: ab “ ba. Suppose
• In Qˆ , ´1 has order 2 since x´1y “ p´1qZ “ t˘1u. On the other hand, the element 5 that a, b have finite orders m, n such that gcdpm, nq “ 1. Then ab has order mn.
has infinite order. In fact, letting t be the order of ab, it suffices to show that t | mn and mn | t.
• t | mn: by the “least divides” (lemma 33), we have to check that pabqmn “ e; since a, b
• In the multiplicative group Cˆ , i has order 4 as xiy “ iZ “ t˘1, ˘iu.
commute,
• The quaternion group Q8 (example 20) has order 8. Its elements have orders pabqmn “ amn bmn “ pam qn pbn qm “ en ¨ em “ e
element 1 ´1 ˘i ˘j ˘k • mn | t: as gcdpm, nq “ 1, it suffices to show that m | t and n | t. To show the latter
order 1 2 4 4 4 for instance, the idea is to raise pabqt “ e to the m-th power in order to “kill” a. Since
ab “ ba,
Since no element has order 8, Q8 is not cyclic (which also follows from the fact that Q8
is not abelian). pabqt “ e ùñ pabqtm “ e ðñ pam qt btm “ e ðñ btm “ e ùñ n | tm
• For |X| ě 3, the symmetric group SX is not abelian and thus not cyclic. where the last implication follows from the “least divides” applied to b. As gcdpm, nq “ 1,
n | tm ùñ n | t. Similarly, from pabqtn “ e we get m | t.
)
• The group Qˆ is not cyclic: given a, b P Z with a, b ‰ 0, xa{by ‰ Qˆ since xa{by has no
17
integer that is coprime to a and b. Definition 37 (Euler Totient Function ϕ). Let n be a positive integer. We define ϕpnq as
number of integers between 1 and n that are coprime to n:
20
Example 35. The “clock group” Z{12Z is cyclic of order 12, generated by 1 (for instance). In def ˇ ˇ
additive notation, the powers of 1 are the multiples of 1, which form the cycle on the left in the ϕpnq “ ˇtk P N | 1 ď k ď n and gcdpk, nq “ 1uˇ
9,
picture. There are other generators of this group, for instance, Z{12Z “ x5y: in other words, For example, ϕp12q “ 4 because there are 4 integers coprime to 12 between 1 and 12: 1, 5,
r2
“jumping in steps of 5 hours”, we cover the whole the clock with the powers (i.e. multiples) of 7, 11, as in the last example. The next lemma gives a formula for ϕpnq in terms of the prime
5, as shown on the right. factorization of n. For example, ϕp100q “ 100p1 ´ 21 qp1 ´ 51 q “ 40.
be
0 0 Lemma 38. Let n be a positive integer. Then
m
11 1 7¨5 5¨5
ˆ ˙
ve
ź 1
10 2 2¨5 10 ¨ 5 ϕpnq “ n ¨ 1´
p
No
p|n
9 3 9¨5 3¨5 p prime
Proof. The result follows once we compute, in two different ways, the probability P of an integer
M
8 4 4¨5 8¨5
k with 1 ď k ď n being coprime to n. On the one hand, P “ ϕpnq{n. On the other, gcdpk, nq “ 1
ST
7 5 11 ¨ 5 1¨5 if and only if p - k for all primes p | n. Since these independent events are to hold simultaneously,
6 6¨5 P equals the product of the probabilities of p - k as p runs through the prime divisors of n. For
& a given prime p | n, the probability of p | k is p1 , and the probability of p - k is p1 ´ p1 q, so
In the following table, we have listed the orders of all elements in Z{12Z. For example, the order ś ´ ¯
of 3 is 4 since x3y “ t0, 3, 6, 9u, whose elements are the vertices of a square inscribed in the P “ 1 ´ p1 .
T
p|n
“dodecagon” Z{12Z. In other words, the order of 3 is 4 since “jumping in steps of 3 hours” we p prime
(E
cycle after 4 jumps. Similarly 8 has order 3 since the elements of the subgroup x8y “ t0, 4, 8u
form a triangle; “jumping every 8 hours” we cycle after 3 jumps.
T
Theorem 39 (Cyclic generators). Let G be a finite cyclic group of order n, generated

element 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 by g P G:
AF
order 1 12 6 4 3 12 2 12 3 4 6 12 G “ xgy “ te, g, g 2 , . . . , g n´1 u

Then for k P Z
DR
0 0 n
11 1 11 1 order of g k “
mdcpn, kq
10 2 10 2 In particular, G “ xg k y (i.e., the order of g k is n) if and only if k is coprime to n.
Hence G has ϕpnq generators.
9 3 9 3
8 4 8 4 Proof. Let d be the order of g k . “Peeling off” the greatest common factor gcdpn, kq of n and k,
we may write
7 5 7 5 n “ n0 ¨ gcdpn, kq k “ k0 ¨ gcdpn, kq
6 6
for integers n0 and k0 with gcdpn0 , k0 q “ 1. Hence n ¨ k0 “ k ¨ n0 . We want to show that d “ n0 .
From the table, the orders of the elements are all divisors of the order of the group. We shall see Since both d and n0 are positive, it suffices to check that one number divides the other and vice
that this is always true for any finite group by Lagrange’s theorem (corollary 53). We also see versa.
that Z{12Z has 4 generators (the elements of order 12: 1, 5, 7, 11). Note that these are exactly • d | n0 : as the order of g k is d, by the “least divides” (lemma 33) all we have to check is
the numbers that are relatively prime to 12 in this list. See the theorem 39 for the general case. that pg k qn0 “ e, which follows from g n “ e and n ¨ k0 “ k ¨ n0 : pg k qn0 “ pg n qk0 “ e.
• n0 | d: we have pg k qd “ e; as g has order n, n | kd by the “least divides”. Canceling out Proof. Since e P Grns, Grns ‰ H. Besides, Grns is closed under inverses: if a P Grns, i.e., an “ e
the common factor gcdpn, kq, and remembering that n0 and k0 are coprime, we get then pa´1 qn “ pan q´1 “ e ùñ a´1 P Grns. Since G is abelian, pabqn “ an bn for all n P Z, and
thus Grns is closed under products: given a, b P Grns ðñ an “ bn “ e, pabqn “ an bn “ e.
n | kd ðñ n0 | k0 d ðñ n0 | d
As Gtor is the union of the subgroups Grns ď G, it is clear that Gtor ‰ H and that Gtor
The next theorem characterizes all subgroups of a cyclic group G “ te, g, g 2 , . . . , g n´1 u of order is closed under inverses. If a, b P Gtor , say a P Grns and b P Grms, then ab P Grmns:
n in terms of the positive divisors d of n. Geometrically, the subgroup Σpdq corresponding to pabqmn “ amn bmn “ pan qm pbm qn “ em ¨ en “ e, hence Gtor is closed under products as
d | n is the “regular pn{dq-gon” Σpdq “ te, g d , g 2d , . . . , g n´d u inscribed in the “regular n-gon” G. well.
Theorem 40 (Subgroups of a cyclic group). Let G “ xgy “ te, g, g 2 , . . . , g n´1 u be a cyclic

group of order n, generated by g. There is a bijection between the set of all positive divisors of
n and the set of all subgroups of G:
Σ : td P N | d | nu ãÑ
Ñ tC | C ď Gu
)
Example 42. The n-torsion subgroup of Cˆ is the order n subgroup consisting of all n-th roots
17
d ÞÑ xg d y of unity:
20
In particular, any subgroup of G is cyclic, and for each d | n there is a single subgroup of G of Cˆ rns “ te2kπi{n | k “ 0, 1, 2, . . . , n ´ 1u “ xe2πi{n y ď S 1
order d, namely,
xg n{d y “ te, g n{d , g 2n{d , . . . , g pd´1qn{d u This is a cyclic subgroup of the group S 1 (see example 19), generated by e2πi{n . Geometrically,
9,
its elements are the vertices of a regular n-gon inscribed in the circle of radius 1 centered at the
r2
Proof. Let us define the inverse5 map Ξ of Σ: origin. The case n “ 6 is depicted below, where ω “ e2πi{6 .
Ξ : tC | C ď Gu Ñ td P N | d | nu
be
C ÞÑ least integer d ą 0 such that g d P C
m
(we “secretly” know that C is a “regular polygon inscribed in G”, and all that Ξ does is to
ve
associate to C the “first vertex” different from e). ω2 ω
No
Let us check that Ξ is well defined. First, note that g n “ e P C, hence such a minimal d ą 0
with g d P C indeed exists, and d ď n. In addition, d is a divisor of n, as will follow from g n “ e
once we prove that d has the “least divides” property: if m P Z is such that g m P C then d | m. ω3 1
M
In fact, we just copy the proof of example 23: let q and r be the quotient and remainder in the
division of m by d, so that m “ qd ` r with 0 ď r ă d. Then g r “ g m ¨ pg d q´q P C, and by the
ST
minimality of d, r “ 0.
Now let us check that
& ω4 ω5
• Ξ ˝ Σ “ id: given d | n, let m “ n{d; then
Σpdq “ xg d y “ te, g d , g 2d , . . . , g pm´1qdq u
T
(E
is a cyclic subgroup of order m, and from this explicit description we clearly get
pΞ ˝ Σqpdq “ Ξpxg d yq “ d. The torsion subgroup of Cˆ is the subgroup consisting of all roots of unity, and is an infinite
subgroup of S 1 :
T
• Σ ˝ Ξ “ id: given C ď G, let d “ ΞpCq. Then g m P C ðñ d | m: in fact, ð follows from

g d P C and the fact that C is closed under products and inverses; ñ is the “least divides”
AF
pCˆ qtor “ te2πir | r P Qu ď S 1

property above. To sum up,
C “ tg dt | t P Zu “ xg d y “ Σpdq “ pΣ ˝ ΞqpCq
DR
Example 43. The hypothesis of G being abelian in the previous lemma is crucial. For instance,
the matrices
Later we shall see a different (shorter) proof of the above theorem as a consequence of the ˆ ˙ ˆ ˙
correspondence theorem (see example 152). 0 ´1 0 1
a“ and b “
1 0 ´1 ´1
Lemma 41. Let G be an abelian group, and n ě 1 be an integer. Then of GL2 pRq satisfy a4 “ 1 and b3 “ 1, but ab has infinite order. In fact,
def
Grns “ tg P G | g n “ eu ˆ ˙
1 n
def
ď pabqn “
Gtor “ tg P G | g has finite orderu “ Grns 0 1
ně1
are subgroups of G, called the n-torsion subgroup and the torsion subgroup of G respectively. for all n P Z (this is an easy induction, “easy” meaning we don’t want to write it down).
5 we must use fancy capital Greek letters here!
Cosets and Lagrange’s theorem There are no other translations, since for instance 3`3Z “ 3Z, 4`3Z “ 1`3Z, ´2`3Z “ 1`3Z,
and so on. Note that these cosets partition Z.
Next we keep the notations of the shuffle lemma 11: λg : G ãÑ
Ñ G and ρg : G ãÑ
Ñ G will denote
In general, given d P N, there are exactly d cosets of dZ in Z,
the left and right translations by g P G, respectively.
r ` dZ pr “ 0, 1, 2, . . . , d ´ 1q,
Definition 44. Let G be a group, and H ď G be a subgroup. A left translation of H, i.e., a
subset of G of the form one for each possible remainder r “ 0, 1, . . . , d ´ 1 in the division by d. Two translates a ` dZ
and b ` dZ are equal if and only if a and b leave the same remainder when divided by d, i.e., if
λg pHq “ g ¨ H “ tgh | h P Hu for some g P G and only if d | a ´ b.
is called a left coset of H. Similarly, a right coset of H is a subset of G of the form
Example 48. Let Z{5Z be the additive group of mod 5 integers, and consider the product group
ρg pHq “ H ¨ g “ thg | h P Hu for some g P G (see definition 4) G “ Z{5Z ˆ Z{5Z, represented by the following 5 ˆ 5 “chessboard”.
We will denote the sets of all left and right cosets of H respectively by
)
4
17
def def
G{H “ tg ¨ H | g P Gu HzG “ tH ¨ g | g P Gu
3
20
Note that if G is abelian, right cosets are left cosets and vice versa.
2
9,

Remark 45. Cosets gH, Hg are just subsets of G, never subgroups, except when gH “ H 1
r2
or Hg “ H, i.e., except when g P H, as we shall see below.
0
be
Example 46. Consider the abelian group G “ pR2 , `q, and let H ď G be the subgroup given by
0 1 2 3 4
m
the diagonal
def 2
H “ tpx, xq P R | x P Ru
ve
Since the coordinates “cycle with period 5”, the best way to picture this board is as a “planifi-
The left (or right) cosets of H are the lines which are parallel to this diagonal: cation of a torus”: by “gluing” two opposing sides of the board, we first obtain a cylinder, then
No
by “gluing” the other two opposite sides (now circles), we finally get a torus. Since this is not
a topology book, we refrain from “cup of tea” and “doughnut” jokes.
H
M
ST
p´1, 1q ` H
p1, 0q ` H &
p´4, ´2q ` H
T
(E
Note that two distinct vectors in R2 may give rise to the same coset of H: for example,
T
Consider the “diagonal subgroup” (orange on the board)

p´1, 1q ` H “ p´4, ´2q ` H. Such “redundancy” can easily be eliminated if we restrict the
AF
set of translation vectors. For example, there is a bijection def

H “ tpa, aq P G | a P Z{5Zu
«
DR
R Ñ G{H The (left or right) cosets of H are the “lines on the torus parallel to H”, i.e., the lines y “ x ` c
a ÞÑ pa, 0q ` H with c P Z{5Z (for example, the line with equation y “ x ` 4 is the green one on the board).
Therefore there is a bijection
whose inverse maps the line y “ x ´ c in G{H to c, the abscissa of its intersection point with the
«
x-axis. Thus there are as many cosets of H as there are elements in the group pR, `q. Later (in Z{5Z Ñ G{H
the section Quotients) we shall see how to endow the set G{H with a group structure; with this c ÞÑ p0, cq ` H
structure, the above bijection will give an isomorphism (see definition 64) between the additive
group R and G{H. Example 49. Consider the group pCˆ , ¨q, and let S 1 ď Cˆ be the subgroup of all complex num-
bers of absolute value 1 (see example 19). The cosets of S 1 are the circles centered at the origin.
Example 47. Consider the subgroup 3Z of the additive group Z. There are exactly 3 (left or
There is a bijection
right) cosets of 3Z in Z:
«
3Z “ t. . . , ´9, ´6, ´3, 0, 3, 6, 9, . . .u Rą0 Ñ Cˆ {S 1
1 ` 3Z “ t. . . , ´8, ´5, ´2, 1, 4, 7, 10, . . .u r ÞÑ rS 1
2 ` 3Z “ t. . . , ´7, ´4, ´1, 2, 5, 8, 11, . . .u whose inverse maps a circle to its radius.
Theorem 52 (Lagrange). Let G be a group, and let H ď G be a subgroup. Then the
left cosets of H equipartition G, i.e.,
(i) The left cosets of H form a partition of G.
(ii) All left cosets of H have the same cardinality.
In particular, if G is finite then |G| is a multiple of |H|. More precisely, |G| “ d ¨ |H|
with d “ |G{H|:
Example 50. Consider the subgroup SLn pRq of GLn pRq consisting of matrices of determinant 1 g1 H g2 H g3 H ¨¨¨ gd H
(the so-called special linear group, see the definition 88 in the section Groups that appear in
)
Nature for more details):
17
def
20
SLn pRq “ tA P GLn pRq | det A “ 1u
Proof. (i) Saying that the left cosets form a partition of G amounts to saying that:
Let us give an explicit description of the left cosets of SLn pRq in GLn pRq in terms of the deter-
9,
Ť
minant. Given r P Rˆ and a matrix A P GLn pRq with det A “ r, we claim that (a) G “ gPG gH, that is, the left cosets cover the whole group G, or every element g P G
r2
belongs to some left coset; and
A ¨ SLn pRq “ tB P GLn pRq | det B “ ru p˚q
(b) given g1 , g2 P G, either g1 ¨ H “ g2 ¨ H or g1 ¨ H X g2 ¨ H “ H, that is, there are no
be
“partial intersections” as in the picture below:
The inclusion Ď is clear by the multiplicativity of the determinant; for the opposite inclusion,
m
note that if det B “ r ‰ 0 then
ve
detpA´1 Bq “ detpAq´1 detpBq “ 1 ùñ A´1 B P SLn pRq ðñ B P A ¨ SLn pRq ‚ x “ g1 h1
No
“ g2 h2
In particular, p˚q shows that there is a bijection, induced by the determinant, between the set of
left cosets of SLn pRq and Rˆ :
M
g1 H g2 H
ST
« ˆ
GLn pRq{SLn pRq Ñ R Now that the goal is clear, we can begin the proof. Item (a) is easy: g P G belongs to gH
A ¨ SLn pRq ÞÑ det A since g “ g ¨ e P g ¨ H. To show (b), suppose that g1 ¨ H X g2 ¨ H ‰ H; we must show
& that g1 ¨ H “ g2 ¨ H. Take any element x P g1 ¨ H X g2 ¨ H, and write x “ g1 h1 “ g2 h2
(h1 , h2 P H). Then g1 “ g2 h2 h´1
1 and by “absorption” (lemma 51)
In general, how to identify if two translates are the same? The answer is given by the following
T
g1 H “ g2 h2 h´1
1 H “ g2 H
(E
(ii) By the shuffle lemma 11, left translation by g2 g1´1 restricts to a bijection
Lemma 51. Let G be a group, and let H ď G.
T
«
λg ´1 : g1 H ÝÑ g2 H
AF
(i) (Absorption) If h P H then h ¨ H “ H “ H ¨ h (the group H “absorbs” the element h). 2 g1
x ÞÝÑ g2 g1´1 x
(ii) We have g1 H “ g2 H ðñ g1 “ g2 h for some h P H. Similarly, Hg1 “ Hg2 ðñ g1 “
DR
hg2 for some h P H. between the two cosets g1 H and g2 H.
Proof. We will only consider left cosets.

Corollary 53 (also called “Lagrange”). Let G be a finite group. Then the order of
(i) Just use the shuffle lemma 11: the left translation λh : H ãÑ
Ñ H is a bijection, in particular
any element g P G divides n “ |G|. In particular, for all g P G, we have g n “ e.
it is surjective and therefore h ¨ H “ λh pHq “ H.
(ii) (ñ) Since g1 “ g1 ¨ e P g1 H “ g2 H, there is h P H such that g1 “ g2 h.

Proof. Consider the cyclic subgroup H “ xgy, and let d “ |H| be the order of g. By Lagrange’s
(ð) By absorption, g1 “ g2 h with h P H implies g1 H “ g2 hH “ g2 H. theorem 52 applied to H, d | n. Thus n{d P N and therefore
g n “ pg d qn{d “ en{d “ e
From now on, we will state results only for left cosets; the results for right cosets are analogous.
The main theorem of this section is Corollary 54. Every group G of prime order p is cyclic.
Proof. By Lagrange, a subgroup H ď G has order 1 or p, that is, H is either trivial or H “ G. Conversely, given an equivalence relation „ on X, the subsets consisting of elements equivalent
Take g P G with g ‰ e. Then xgy is a nontrivial subgroup of G, hence G “ xgy is cyclic. to one another, i.e., subsets of the form
Example 55 (Sunflower Count). Let G be a group of order |G| “ 25. Show that G contains def
x “ ty P X | y „ xu px P Xq
at most 6 subgroups of order 5.
form a partition of X (the set x is called the equivalence class of x).
Solution Given two distinct subgroups H1 , H2 ď G of order 5, H1 X H2 “ teu. In fact, by Given an equivalence relation „ on X, the set of all its equivalence classes
Lagrange |H1 X H2 | divides |H1 | “ |H2 | “ 5, so |H1 X H2 | “ 1 or |H1 X H2 | “ 5. But since
H1 ‰ H2 , H1 X H2 is a proper subgroup of Hi (i.e., H1 X H2 ‰ Hi for i “ 1, 2), the only def
X{„ “ tx | x P Xu
possibility is |H1 X H2 | “ 1 ðñ H1 X H2 “ teu.
Let H1 , . . . , Hn be the list of all order 5 subgroups of G. By the above, they form a “sunflower is called the quotient set of X by „. Intuitively, X{„ is the set obtained by “merging” into a
configuration”, with n “petals” intersecting at the element identity e, each containing 4 other single element all the elements belonging to the same equivalence class.
elements: By Lagrange’s theorem, the left cosets of a subgroup H ď G define an equivalence relation on
the group G:
)
17
Hn g1 , g2 P G are H-equivalent ðñ g1 , g2 belong to the same left coset of H
20
.. ðñ g1 H “ g2 H
.
ðñ Dh P H such that g1 “ g2 h plema 51q
e
9,
H2 Note that G{H, the set of all left cosets of H in G, is the quotient set of this equivalence relation.
r2
H1
be
Morphisms, Isomorphisms, and Automorphisms
m
(notice the striking similarity, apart from the sunglasses) Groups are social animals, who communicate with each other through the so-called morphisms:
ve
Definition 58. Given two groups pG, ¨q and pH, ˚q, a homomorphism (or simply (group) mor-
No
The “sunflower” covers 4n ` 1 elements, hence 4n ` 1 ď |G| “ 25, and therefore n ď 6.
phism) ϕ : G Ñ H is a function that preserves products, i.e.,
This inequality is sharp: considering the product group G “ Z{5Z ˆ Z{5Z of example 48, we see
that there are exactly 6 subgroups of order 5, namely the 6 “lines” through the origin (draw a ϕpa ¨ bq “ ϕpaq ˚ ϕpbq pa, b P Gq
M
picture!)
Note that the product on the left hand is that of G, while the one on the right is that of H. The
ST
H1 “ xp1, 0qy H2 “ xp1, 1qy H3 “ xp1, 2qy
set of all homomorphisms from G to H is denoted by
H4 “ xp1, 3qy H5 “ xp1, 4qy H6 “ xp0, 1qy
def
& HompG, Hq “ tϕ : G Ñ H | ϕ is a morphismu
T
Example 59. Let G and H be two groups.
Note that the bijection x ÞÑ x´1 of G into G sends the left coset gH to the right coset Hg ´1 ,
(E
and therefore induces a bijection between G{H and HzG. Thus we can define • The constant function G Ñ H given by g ÞÑ eH (g P G) is a group morphism, the trivial
morphism.
Definition 56. Let G be a group, and let H ď G. We define the index of H in G (notation:
T
• If H ď G, the inclusion map H ãÑ G is a morphism. In particular, teu ãÑ G and

rG : Hs) as the number of (left or right) cosets of H in G:
AF
id : G Ñ G are morphisms.
rG : Hs “ |G{H| “ |HzG|
• The logarithm and exponential functions
DR
In particular, when G is finite, by Lagrange’s theorem, rG : Hs “ |G|{|H|.

log : Rą0 Ñ R and exp : R Ñ Rą0
Remark 57. Recall that an equivalence relation „ on a set X is a relation that is
are bijective morphisms between the additive group pR, `q and the multiplicative group
(i) reflexive: x „ x for all x P X;
pRą0 , ¨q.
(ii) symmetric: x „ y ðñ y „ x for x, y P X;
• The absolute value
(iii) transitive: x „ y and y „ z implies y „ z for x, y, z P X.
A key fact is that to give a partition of X is the same as to give an equivalence relation Cˆ Ñ Rą0
on X. In fact, given a partition z ÞÑ |z|
ď
X“ Xi with Xi X Xj “ H whenever i ‰ j is a morphism between the multiplicative groups Cˆ and Rą0 .
iPI
• The determinant is a morphism between the multiplicative groups GLn pRq and Rˆ :
we may define an equivalence relation „ in X by declaring two elements equivalent if they lie
in the same set Xi of the partition: GLn pRq Ñ Rˆ
x „ y ðñ x and y belong to the same subset Xi A ÞÑ det A
• The reduction mod 12 • Ξ is surjective: given g P G we can define µg P HompZ, Gq by µg pnq “ g n ; then Ξpµg q “ g.
Z Z{12Z Example 62 (Kernel and image). If ϕ : G Ñ H is a group morphism then the image of ϕ is
n ÞÑ n a subgroup of H: im ϕ ď H. Besides, if I ď H then the pre-image of I is a subgroup of G:
def
is a surjective morphism between the additive groups Z and Z{12Z. ϕ´1 pIq “ tg P G | ϕpgq P Iu ď G
• Any linear transformation T : V Ñ W between two vector spaces is a morphism between In particular, the pre-image of the trivial subgroup of H is a subgroup of G, called kernel of ϕ:
the additive groups pV, `q and pW, `q.
def
• Let C “ tf : r0, 1s Ñ R | f is continuousu be the additive group of continuous functions ker ϕ “ ϕ´1 peq “ tg P G | ϕpgq “ eu
from r0, 1s to R. Then integration
As in Linear Algebra, the importance of the kernel is that it “measures” the lack of injectivity:
CÑR
ż1
)
f ÞÑ f pxq dx Lemma 63 (Kernel and injectivity). Let ϕ : G Ñ H be a group morphism. Then ϕ
17
0 is injective if and only if ker φ “ teu.
is a morphism between the additive groups C and R.
20
• ψ : G Ñ G given by ψpgq “ g 2 is a group morphism if and only if G is abelian. Proof. If ϕ is injective, then
9,
• ϕ : G Ñ G given by ϕpgq “ g ´1 is group morphism if and only if G is abelian. g P ker ϕ ðñ ϕpgq “ e “ ϕpeq ðñ g “ e
r2
• The left translation λg : G Ñ G is almost never a group morphism. In fact, λg is a
That is, ker ϕ is trivial. Conversely, if ker ϕ is trivial then
morphism if and only if g “ e, i.e., if and only if λg “ id.
be
• If G is abelian and n P Z, then the exponentiation by n ϕpaq “ ϕpbq ðñ ϕpaqϕpbq´1 “ e ðñ ϕpab´1 q “ e ðñ ab´1 “ e ðñ a “ b
m
µn : G Ñ G That is, ϕ is injective.
ve
n
g ÞÑ g Definition 64. Let G and H be two groups.
No
is a group morphism. Note that, in additive notation, exponentiation becomes the multi- (i) An isomorphism ϕ : G ãÑÑ H is a bijective morphism of groups; by lemma 60, the inverse
plication by n map µn pgq “ ng. function ϕ´1 : H ãÑ
Ñ G is also an isomorphism. We will denote an isomorphism between
«
M
G and H by ϕ : G Ñ H.
Directly from the definition, we get
(ii) We say that G and H are isomorphic (notation: G – H or G « H) if there is an
ST
isomorphism between them (there may be more than one isomorphism).
Lemma 60. Let ϕ : G Ñ H be a group morphism. & Intuitively, two isomorphic groups G and H are “equal up to the name of its elements”: an
«
(i) For any n P Z and g P G, ˘n isomorphism ϕ : G Ñ H “renames” the elements of G in terms of elements of H, preserving
ϕpg n q “ ϕpgq
T
`
products. Thus isomorphisms preserve all the properties depending solely on the group axioms.
«
(E
In particular, by taking n “ 0 and n “ ´1, we get that ϕ preserves identity and inverses: For example, given an isomorphism ϕ : G Ñ H, for all g P G the elements g and ϕpgq have the
` ˘´1 same (possibly infinite) order.
ϕpeG q “ eH and ϕpa´1 q “ ϕpaq pa P Gq
T
Example 65. • pR, `q – pRą0 , ¨q (via the log and exp functions).
AF
(ii) If ϕ is bijective then the inverse function ϕ´1 : H ãÑ

Ñ G is also a group morphism.
• In the notation of examples 18 and 19, we have S 1 – SO2 pRq via the isomorphism (given
(iii) If ψ : H Ñ I is another group morphism then the composition ψ ˝ ϕ : G Ñ I is also a group in Cartesian and polar coordinates, respectively)
DR
morphism. «
S 1 Ñ SO2 pRq
Example 61. Consider the cyclic group pZ, `q and let G be any group. There is a natural ˆ ˙
a ´b
bijection a ` bi ÞÑ pa, b P Rq
b a
Ξ : HompZ, Gq ãÑ
ÑG ˆ
cos θ ´ sin θ
˙
iθ
e ÞÑ pθ P Rq
ϕ ÞÑ ϕp1q sin θ cos θ
In other words, a morphism ϕ P HompZ, Gq is completely determined by the image ϕp1q of the • Consider the subgroup U T2 pRq ď GL2 pRq from example 18. There is an isomorphism
generator 1 P Z. between the multiplicative group U T2 pRq and the additive group R, given by
In fact,
«
def ϕ : U T2 pRq Ñ R
• Ξ is injective: if Ξpϕq “ Ξpψq, i.e., g “ ϕp1q “ ψp1q then ˆ ˙
1 a
ϕpnq “ ϕpn ¨ 1q “ ϕp1qn “ g n “ ψp1qn “ ψpn ¨ 1q “ ψpnq ÞÑ a
0 1
for all n P Z by (i) of the above lemma.
• An infinite group G is cyclic if and only if G – Z. The implication ð is clear since Z is Note in particular that if G has prime order p then G is cyclic (corollary 54) and therefore
infinite cyclic. To see ñ, if G “ xgy then we may define a surjective function G – pZ{pZ, `q, which explains some of the entries in the table above. Example 229 covers the
« last entry of the table, while the groups of order 6, 10, and 14 are treated in example 230. The
ZÑG
cases of order 4 and 9 follow from theorem 201.
n ÞÑ g n
«
which is clearly a group morphism. This function is also injective: if g m “ g n for integers Definition 68. Let G be a group. An automorphism of G is an isomorphism ϕ : G Ñ G. The
m ą n then g mń “ e and therefore |G| “ |xgy| ď m ´ n would be finite, a contradiction. set of all automorphisms of G is denoted by
def «
• Similarly, a group G of order of n is cyclic if and only if G – pZ{nZ, `q. AutpGq “ tϕ : G Ñ G | ϕ is automorphism u
• Rˆ and Qˆ are not isomorphic since the first group is uncountable while the second is and is a group with the operation ˝ (composition of functions).
countable.
An automorphism of G is to be thought of as a symmetry of G, following the philosophy explained
• The groups Z and Qˆ are not isomorphic since the torsion subgroup Ztor (see lemma 41)
in the next section.
is trivial while pQˆ qtor “ t˘1u.
«
)
• The additive groups Z{2Z ˆ Z{2Z and Z{4Z are not isomorphic since the second has ele- Example 69 (Conjugation). For any group G and g P G, conjugation κg : G Ñ G (see defi-
17
ments of order 4 (1 or 3) while the first does not. nition 13) is an automorphism of G. In fact, by lemma 14 we already know that κg is a group
morphism by the conjugate identity (1), while conjugate identity (2) shows that κg is bijective
20
Example 66 (Hom Group). If pH, `q is an abelian group and G, any group, HompG, Hq also with inverse κg´1 . Note that the conjugate identity (2) also says that
has an abelian group structure: if ϕ, ψ P HompG, Hq we define ϕ ` ψ by g ÞÑ ϕpgq ` ψpgq (sum
9,
in H), which is a morphism since H is abelian: G Ñ AutpGq
r2
pϕ ` ψqpabq “ ϕpabq ` ψpabq “ ϕpaq ` ϕpbq ` ψpaq ` ψpbq g ÞÑ κg
“ ϕpaq ` ψpaq ` ϕpbq ` ψpbq is a group morphism. The kernel of this morphism is the center ZpGq of G (see example 22).
be
“ pϕ ` ψqpaq ` pϕ ` ψqpbq pa, b P Gq Example 70. We have AutpZq – pt˘1u, ¨q. In fact, consider the isomorphism
m
The identity element of HompG, Hq is the trivial morphism, and the inverse of ϕ is ´ϕ, which «
is the morphism given by g ÞÑ ´ϕpgq (opposite in H). Ξ : Z Ñ HompZ, Zq
ve
For example, HompZ, Zq – Z via the bijection Ξ of example 61. Note that the morphism n ÞÑ µn
No
µn P HompZ, Zq corresponding to n P Z is the multiplication by n: µn pxq “ nx (see exam- Here µn denotes the multiplication by n as in examples 61 and 66. The map µn : Z Ñ Z
ple 59). is bijective if and only if n “ ˘1. In addition, the isomorphism Ξ takes multiplication in
Z into composition of functions: µn ˝ µm “ µnm . Thus Ξ restricts to a group isomorphism
M
Remark 67. An important problem in Mathematics is to classify, up to isomorphism, all finite
«
groups. Later, we will see several tools that help us in this task. In particular, we will be able t˘1u Ñ AutpZq.
ST
to list, up to isomorphism, all groups of order up to 15 (see section Groups that appear in
Example 71 (Automorphisms of a finite cyclic group). Let a P N, and consider the mul-
Nature for the meaning of the notations of the groups below):
tiplication by a mod n:
Order Groups
& µa : Z{nZ Ñ Z{nZ
T
def
1 trivial x ÞÑ a ¨ x “ x ` ¨¨¨ ` x “ a ¨ x
(E
looooomooooon
2 Z{2Z a times
(here ax denotes the element of Z{nZ corresponding to the remainder in the division of ax by
T
3 Z{3Z
n, as in the remark of example 2). Note that µa P HompZ{nZ, Z{nZq (an instance of the expo-
AF
4 Z{4Z; Z{2Z ˆ Z{2Z nentiation by a of example 59, written in additive notation). By theorem 39, if gcdpa, nq “ 1
then µa maps the generator 1 to another generator a “ µa p1q of the cyclic group Z{nZ, and
5 Z{5Z thus µa is surjective. In that case, since Z{nZ is finite, µa must also be injective, that is,
DR
6 Z{6Z; S3 – D3 µa P AutpZ{nZ, `q.

Conversely, since an automorphism σ P AutpZ{nZ, `q preserves orders, it maps generators to
7 Z{7Z generators (i.e., elements of order n). Thus σp1q “ a for some integer a coprime to n by
8 Z{8Z; Z{2Z ˆ Z{4Z; Z{2Z ˆ Z{2Z ˆ Z{2Z; D4 ; Q8 theorem 39. But then, for all x “ 0, 1, 2, . . . , n ´ 1,
9 Z{9Z; Z{3Z ˆ Z{3Z σpxq “ σp1
looooomooooon σp1q ` ¨ ¨ ¨ ` σp1q “ x ¨ a “ xa “ µa pxq
` ¨ ¨ ¨ ` 1q “ loooooooooomoooooooooon
x times x times
10 Z{10Z; D5
That is, we have σ “ µa .
11 Z{11Z To sum up, we have
12 Z{12Z; Z{2Z ˆ Z{6Z; D6 ; A4 ; xa, b, c | a3 “ b2 “ c2 “ abcy AutpZ{nZq “ tµa | 1 ď a ď n and gcdpa, nq “ 1u
13 Z{13Z and therefore | AutpZ{nZq| “ ϕpnq (see definition 37).
For instance, AutpZ{12Zq consists of 4 elements, µ1 , µ5 , µ7 , µ11 , the multiplications by 1, 5, 7
14 Z{14Z; D7
and 11 mod 12. The following table computes the composition operation in AutpZ{12Zq, where
15 Z{15Z the element of the σ-th row and τ -th column is σ ˝ τ :
˝ µ1 µ5 µ7 µ11 • Notation as a product of disjoint cycles
µ1 µ1 µ5 µ7 µ11
µ5 µ5 µ1 µ11 µ7 π “ p13qp245q “ p245qp13q “ p31qp452q “ p245qp13q
µ7 µ7 µ11 µ1 µ5
µ11 µ11 µ7 µ5 µ1 corresponding to the graph
In general, µa ˝ µb “ µab mod n in AutpZ{nZq, where x mod n denotes the remainder in the 4
division of x by n. That is, automorphism composition corresponds to multiplication mod n,
hence the group AutpZ{nZq is abelian, isomorphic to the unit group pZ{nZqˆ of the ring Z{nZ. 2 1 3
5
Groups that appear in Nature • Notation as a permutation matrix
The overwhelming majority of groups that appear naturally are “sets of symmetries” of an object:
)
0 0 1 0 0
¨ ˛
17
Object Symmetries Group ˚0 0 0 0 1‹
Tπ “ ˚1 0 0 0 0‹
˚ ‹
20
˝0 1 0 0 0‚
t1, 2, . . . , nu permutations symmetric Sn
0 0 0 1 0
9,
polynomial
ś
pxi ´ xj q permutations of
alternating An
1ďiăjďn the variables
r2
In general: a permutation π P Sn can be represented by
rotations and
regular n-gon dihedral Dn (i) Matrix notation 2 ˆ n, where the second row represents the image of the first one by π:
be
reflections
bijective linear general linear
ˆ ˙
m
vector space V 1 2 3 ¨¨¨ n
transformations GLpV q π“
πp1q πp2q πp3q ¨ ¨ ¨ πpnq
ve
vector space V with inner orthogonal linear
orthogonal OpV q Although it is convenient to write the first row in increasing order, that is not necessary.
No
product transformations
For instance, the inverse of π can be written
Let us see more details below. ˆ ˙
M
πp1q πp2q πp3q ¨ ¨ ¨ πpnq
π ´1 “
1 2 3 ¨¨¨ n
ST
Symmetric group
Let X be any set. By definition, a symmetry of X is a bijection (also called permutation) (ii) Notation as a product of disjoint cycles: a t-cycle γ P Sn is a permutation of the form
f : X ãÑ
Ñ X (after all, any two elements of X are “equivalent” to each other). The symmetric
group SX of X is the group given by all these symmetries with the operation ˝ (composition of
& a1 ÞÑ a2 , a2 ÞÑ a3 , a3 ÞÑ a4 , . . . , at´1 ÞÑ at , at ÞÑ a1
T
functions): a ÞÑ a if a R ta1 , a2 , . . . , at u
SX “ tf : X ãÑ
Ñ X | f is a bijectionu
(E
When X “ t1, 2, . . . , nu, we shall abbreviate SX by Sn . We have |Sn | “ n!, and Sn is abelian for t distinct elements a1 , a2 , . . . , at P t1, 2, . . . , nu. We will denote this t-cycle by
only for n “ 1, 2.
T
A permutation π P Sn can be represented in several ways. Let us look at a concrete example γ “ pa1 a2 a3 a4 . . . at q
AF
before the general description, given below.

Note that:
Example 72. Consider the permutation π P S5 given by
DR
• the ai ’s in the above notation may be circularly permuted without changing the cycle
πp1q “ 3, πp2q “ 4, πp3q “ 1, πp4q “ 5, πp5q “ 2
γ, for instance pa1 a2 . . . at q “ pa2 a3 . . . at a1 q.
We can represent π in any of the following ways:
• Notation as a 2 ˆ 5 matrix • the inverse of γ is obtained by “reading the cycle backwards”
ˆ ˙
1 2 3 4 5
π“ γ ´1 “ pat at´1 . . . a3 a2 a1 q
3 4 1 5 2
which pictorially corresponds to
• The order of the t-cycle γ is exactly t.
1 1
• disjoint cycles commute: if
2 2
3 3 ta1 , a2 , . . . , at u X tb1 , b2 , . . . , bu u “ H,
4 4 then (remember that the product is the function composition)

5 5 pa1 a2 . . . at qpb1 b2 . . . bu q “ pb1 b2 . . . bu qpa1 a2 . . . at q
We can write any permutation π P Sn as the product of disjoint cycles ˝ p1q p123q p132q p12q p23q p13q
p1q p1q p123q p132q p12q p23q p13q
π “ pa11 a12 . . . a1t1 qpa21 a22 . . . a2t2 q . . . par1 ar2 . . . artr q p123q p123q p132q p1q p13q p12q p23q
p132q p132q p1q p123q p23q p13q p12q
with aij ‰ akl if pi, jq ‰ pk, lq. In fact, we can construct a directed graph with vertices p12q p12q p23q p13q p1q p123q p132q
1, 2, . . . , n and directed edges starting at vertex i and ending at vertex πpiq for i “ 1, 2, . . . , n. p23q p23q p13q p12q p132q p1q p123q
Since π is bijective, for each vertex i, there is a single edge i Ñ πpiq leaving i and a single p13q p13q p12q p23q p123q p132q p1q
one π ´1 piq Ñ i arriving at i. Thus, since the graph is finite, it must be a disjoint union
of cycles: each vertex i belongs to at most one cycle (since i is connected to exactly two
other vertices); and i belongs to some cycle, since starting from i and following the directed def def
From the above table, we see that S3 is not abelian. Note also that ρ “ p123q and σ “ p12q
edges, we eventually return to i, obtaining a “pure cycle,” not something like the following generate S3 :
picture (where two edges arrive at vertex j):
S3 “ xρ, σy “ tp1q, ρ, ρ2 , σ, ρσ, ρ2 σu
The orders of the elements of S3 are
)
17
i j
20
τ P S3 p1q ρ ρ2 σ ρσ ρ2 σ
Note that the above representation of π as a product of disjoint cycles is not unique: order of τ 1 3 3 2 2 2
9,
disjoint cycles commute and elements within a cycle can be circularly permuted. In this
r2
notation, we usually omit the cycles of size 1 (the fixed points of the permutation). Example 74 (Conjugation of cycles). If σ P Sn and pa1 a2 . . . at q P Sn is a cycle then
The representation of π as product of disjoint cycles allows one not only to quickly write
be
π ´1 but also to easily determine π’s order in terms of the sizes t1 , t2 , . . . , tr of its cycles:
` ˘
m
|xπy| “ lcmpt1 , t2 , . . . , tr q σ ¨ pa1 a2 . . . at q ¨ σ ´1 “ σpa1 q σpa2 q . . . σpat q
ve
In fact, since disjoint cycles commute,
No
because σ ¨ pa1 a2 . . . at q ¨ σ ´1 ¨ σpai q “ σpai`1 q for i “ 1, 2, . . . , t ´ 1 and σ ¨ pa1 a2 . . . at q ¨ σ ´1 ¨
π n “ pa11 a12 . . . a1t1 qn pa21 a22 . . . a2t2 qn . . . par1 ar2 . . . artr qn σpat q “ σpa1 q.
and therefore π n “ id ðñ pai1 ai2 . . . aiti qn “ id for all i “ 1, 2, . . . , r. The result now
M
follows from the “least divides” lemma 33 and the fact that a t-cycle has order t. Example 75 (Center of Sn ). Let us show that the center ZpSn q (see example 22) of Sn is
ST
«
(iii) Notation by permutation matrix: let e1 “ p1, 0, . . . , 0q, . . . , en “ p0, . . . , 0, 1q be the stan- trivial for n ě 3. First, note that π P ZpSn q if and only if the conjugation κπ : Sn Ñ Sn is the
dard basis of Rn ; given π P Sn , consider the bijective linear transformation induced by the identity since πτ “ τ π ðñ πτ π ´1 “ τ . Now let π ‰ id. There exists 1 ď i ď n such that
corresponding permutation of the ei ’s: & def
j “ πpiq ‰ i. As n ě 3, we can still choose k R ti, ju; consider the 2-cycle pi kq. From the
« previous example,
Tπ : Rn Ñ Rn
T
(E
` ˘ ` ˘
ei ÞÑ eπpiq π ¨ pi kq ¨ π ´1 “ πpiq πpkq “ j πpkq ‰ pi kq since j R ti, ku
The matrix of Tπ with respect to the standard basis, which we also denote by Tπ , yields Therefore κπ ‰ id and π R ZpSn q.
T
another way of representing the permutation π:

AF
#
1 if πpjq “ i The next example shows the importance of the symmetric group within the group fauna.
Tπ “ paij q1ďi,jďn where aij “
DR
0 otherwise
Example 76 (Cayley). Let G “ tg1 , g2 , . . . , gn u be a finite group. Given g P G (i.e., g “ gi
The advantage of this representation is that composition of permutations amounts to the
for some i), by the shuffle lemma 11 the left translation λg : G ãÑ Ñ G defines a permutation in
usual matrix multiplication:
the symmetric group SG :
ˆ ˙
Tπ˝τ “ Tπ ¨ Tτ pτ, π P Sn q g1 g2 ¨¨¨ gn
λg “
g ¨ g1 g ¨ g2 ¨ ¨ ¨ g ¨ gn
That is, we have an injective group morphism
As λg ˝ λh “ λgh , the map
Sn ãÑ GLpRn q
π ÞÑ Tπ G ãÑ SG
g ÞÑ λg
In particular, the matrix of π ´1 is the inverse of the matrix of π: Tπ´1 “ Tπ´1 .
is a group morphism; since λg “ id ðñ g “ e, its kernel is trivial, and thus it is injective
Example 73. The following is the multiplication table of S3 , in cycle notation. The the entry (lemma 63). This allows us to identify G with its image in SG , showing that every finite group
on the λ-th row and κ-th column represents the product λκ, in that order. is isomorphic to a subgroup of the symmetric group SG – Sn with n “ |G|.
Parity of Permutations and the Alternating Group Example 79. In the notation of example 73, straight from the definitions, for the generators
σ, ρ of S3 we have
Given a polynomial f px1 , . . . , xn q P Zrx1 , . . . , xn s and a permutation σ P Sn , let σpf q be the
polynomial obtained from f by permuting its the variables according to σ: σpdq “ pxσp1q ´ xσp2q qpxσp1q ´ xσp3q qpxσp2q ´ xσp3q q
def
σpf px1 , . . . , xn qq “ f pxσp1q , . . . , xσpnq q “ px2 ´ x1 qpx2 ´ x3 qpx1 ´ x3 q “ ´d
We now build an important group morphism and
Π : pSn , ˝q Ñ pt˘1u, ¨q
ρpdq “ pxρp1q ´ xρp2q qpxρp1q ´ xρp3q qpxρp2q ´ xρp3q q
called the parity morphism. For this, consider the polynomial “ px2 ´ x3 qpx2 ´ x1 qpx3 ´ x1 q “ d
def
ź
dpx1 , . . . , xn q “ pxi ´ xj q Hence σ is odd and ρ is even. Since S3 “ xσ, ρy, using the parity morphism we can complete
1ďiăjďn
the rest of following table:
)
17
Since any σ P Sn permutes the 2-element subsets ti, ju Ď t1, . . . , nu, σpdq has the same factors
pxi ´ xj q as d up to sign, hence τ P S3 p1q ρ ρ2 σ ρσ ρ2 σ
20
σpdq “
ź
pxσpiq ´ xσpjq q “ ˘d p´1qτ 1 1 1 ´1 ´1 ´1
9,
1ďiăjďn
Hence A3 “ xρy “ tp1q, ρ, ρ2 u is a cyclic group of order 3, generated by ρ (or ρ2 ).
r2
Definition 77. Let d be the polynomial defined above. The parity morphism is the group
morphism given by
Definition 80. A transposition in Sn is a cycle pi jq of size 2.
be
Π : Sn Ñ t˘1u
m
σpdq Example 81 (Transpositions are odd). For the transposition σ “ p12q, only the factor
σ ÞÑ px1 ´ x2 q of the polynomial dpx1 , . . . , xn q changes sign, so p12q is odd. By example 74, any
ve
d
transposition is conjugate to p12q, and as t˘1u is abelian, conjugate permutations have the same
That is, Πpσq “ 1 if σpdq “ d and Πpσq “ ´1 if σpdq “ ´d. The kernel of Π is called alternating
No
parity. In fact, for i ă j let τ “ p1 iqp2 jq, with the convention that τ “ p2 jq whenever i “ 1,
group and is denoted by
def
and τ “ p1 iq whenever j “ 2. Then
An “ ker Π “ tσ P Sn | σpdq “ du
M
` ˘
In other words, An is the subgroup of Sn consisting of the symmetries of the polynomial d. pi jq “ τ p1q τ p2q “ τ p1 2qτ ´1 ùñ Πpi jq “ Πpτ q ¨ Πp1 2q ¨ Πpτ q´1 “ Πp1 2q “ ´1
ST
A case-by-case analysis shows that Πpσ ˝τ q “ Πpσq¨Πpτ q for all σ, τ P Sn , i.e., Π is in fact a group Next we show that rSn : An s “ 2 for n ě 2. In fact, if n ě 2, there are odd permutations
morphism. For example, if Πpτ q “ 1 and Πpσq “ ´1 then pτ ˝ σqpdq “ τ p´dq “ ´τ pdq “ ´d, in Sn (for example, transpositions). Fix τ such that p´1qτ “ ´1; so τ ´1 is also odd since
thus Πpσ ˝ τ q “ ´1 “ Πpσq ¨ Πpτ q.
& Πpτ ´1 q “ Πpτ q´1 “ p´1q´1 “ ´1. By Lagrange’s theorem 52 the left cosets of An partition Sn ;
The name parity morphism stems from the following we claim that
T
Sn “ looA τomo
non Y lo Anon
Definition 78. Let σ P Sn . We say that
(E
mo
# even odd
even if Πpσq “ 1 ðñ σpdq “ d ðñ σ P An In fact, it suffices to show that the coset τ An is the set of all odd permutations of Sn . Clearly,
σ is
T
odd if Πpσq “ ´1 ðñ σpdq “ ´d ðñ σ R An all elements of τ An are odd, being products of the odd permutation τ and an even permutation
AF
in An . Conversely, given an odd permutation σ, τ ´1 σ is even, that is,

In view of this definition, we introduce the notation
τ ´1 σ P An ðñ σ P τ An
DR
def
p´1qσ “ Πpσq
since p´1qeven “ 1 and p´1qodd “ ´1. which shows that any odd permutation belongs to τ An , as desired.
Observe that p´1qeven “ 1 and p´1qodd “ ´1 defines an isomorphism from the additive group Remark 82. Since An “ ker Π, we shall see later that, by the isomorphism theorem 155, Π in-
teven, oddu to the multiplicative group t˘1u. Composing Π with the inverse isomorphism duces an isomorphism between the quotient group Sn {An and t˘1u, which will give the “right”
t˘1u – teven, oddu, the identity Πpστ q “ Πpσq ¨ Πpτ q amounts to the usual “parity table” proof that |Sn {An | “ 2 ðñ rSn : An s “ 2.
σ is even σ is odd
τ is even στ is even στ is odd Summing up, if n ě 2, there are as many even permutations as there are odd permutations in
τ is odd στ is odd στ is even Sn , hence #
1 if n “ 1
which agrees with the “exponent law” |An | “
n!{2 if n ě 2
p´1qeven ¨ p´1qodd “ p´1qevenòdd “ p´1qodd “ ´1
In practice, it is difficult to determine the parity of a permutation based solely on the above
and so on. definition. Hence the lemma
Lemma 83 (Parity Criteria). Let σ P Sn .
General Linear Group
(i) Transpositions are odd. Let k be a field6 ,and V be a finite dimensional k-vector space. Let GLpV q be the subgroup of
(ii) The transpositions generatea
Sn . Thus, a permutation π is even (respectively, the symmetric group SV consisting of all linear symmetries of V , i.e.,
odd) if π is the product of an even (respectively, odd) number of transpositions. def «
In particular, for an r-cycle σ “ pa1 a2 a3 . . . ar q, GLpV q “ tT : V Ñ V | T is a bijective linear transformationu
p´1qσ “ p´1qr`1 This is one of the most important groups in Mathematics, the so-called general linear group.
That is, cycles of even size are odd permutations, and cycles of odd size are even Fix a basis of V ; we shall write MT for the matrix of T P GLpV q with respect to this basis. Let
permutations.
def
(iii) If Tσ is the permutation matrix corresponding to σ, GLn pkq “ tA P Mn pkq | det A ‰ 0u
p´1qσ “ det Tσ be the multiplicative group of n ˆ n matrices with entries in k. There is an isomorphism (a
)
17
non-canonical one since it depends on a choice of basis of V )
a which is to be expected: we can get any permutation of n objects by swapping two
20
elements at a time «
GLpV q Ñ GLn pkq
T ÞÑ MT
9,
Proof. We have already proved (i) in example 81.
r2
In other words, this bijection maps composition of functions into matrix multiplication: MS˝T “
(ii) Since any permutation is a product of disjoint cycles, we only need to show that cycles MS ¨ MT . Thanks to this isomorphism, by abuse of language we will sometimes identify linear
be
are products of transpositions. More precisely, a r-cycle can be written as the product of transformations in GLpkn q with their associated matrices in GLn pkq relative to the standard
r ´ 1 transpositions: basis e1 “ p1, 0, . . . , 0q, e2 “ p0, 1, . . . , 0q, . . . , en “ p0, 0, . . . , 1q.
m
pa1 a2 a3 . . . ar q “ pa1 ar qpa1 ar´1 qpa1 ar´2 q . . . pa1 a3 qpa1 a2 q
ve
(iii) Since the permutation matrix Tσ of the transposition σ “ pi jq is obtained by swapping Example 86 (General Linear Group over Finite Fields). Let Fq be the finite field with q
No
the i-th and j-th columns of the identity matrix I, det Tσ “ ´ det I “ ´1. The result now elements. Then
follows from the multiplicativity of the determinant detpABq “ detpAq detpBq and from
the previous item. |GLn pFq q| “ pq n ´ 1qpq n ´ qqpq n ´ q 2 q ¨ . . . ¨ pq n ´ q n´1 q
M
In fact, a n ˆ n matrix A is invertible if and only if its columns form a basis of Fn q . There
ST
Example 84 (3-cycles generate An ). Every element of An is the product of an even number are q n ´ 1 choices for the first basis vector (any nonzero vector); once the first vector has been
of transpositions, so it suffices to show that products of the form pabqpacq and pabqpcdq (with chosen, there are q n ´ q choices for the second basis vector (any vector different from the q
distinct letters representing distinct numbers) are products of 3-cycles, which is immediate: & multiples of the first one); once the first two basis vectors have been chosen, there are q n ´ q 2
pabqpacq “ pacbq pabqpcdq “ pacbqpacdq choices for the third one (any vector that is different from the q 2 linear combinations of the first
T
two); and so on.
Example 85. Let us show that, for n ě 3,
(E
Sn “ xp1 2q, p1 2 3 . . . nqy

Example 87 (The isomorphism GL2 pF2 q – S3 ). Let F2 “ t0, 1u be the field of integers
Let H “ xp1 2q, p1 2 3 . . . nqy. By lemma 83, Sn is generated by transpositions, hence it suffices
mod 2. By the previous example, |GL2 pF2 q| “ p22 ´ 1qp22 ´ 2q “ 6. Explicitly, its elements are
T
to show that pi jq P H for any 1 ď i ă j ď n. First, note that p1 2q, p2 3q, p3 4q, . . . , pn ´ 1 nq P H:
AF
p1 23 . . . nq ¨ p1 2q ¨ p1 2 3 . . . nq´1 “ p2 3q
ˆ ˙ ˆ ˙ ˆ ˙
1 0
def def 0 1 def 0 1
I “ R “ S “
p1 2 3 . . . nq ¨ p2 3q ¨ p1 2 3 . . . nq´1 “ p3 4q 0 1 1 1 1 0
DR
ˆ ˙ ˆ ˙ ˆ ˙
.. 1 1 1 0 1 1
R2 “ RS “ R2 S “
. 1 0 1 1 0 1
p1 2 3 . . . nq ¨ pn ´ 2 n ´ 1q ¨ p1 2 3 . . . nq´1 “ pn ´ 1 nq
In particular, GL2 pF2 q “ xR, Sy. Consider the non-zero vectors of F22 : v1 “ p1, 0q, v2 “ p0, 1q
But p1 2q, p1 3q, p1 4q, . . . , p1 nq P H as well: v3 “ p1, 1q. The elements of GL2 pF2 q permute the vectors v1 , v2 , v3 , so that we get a map
p1 2q ¨ p2 3q ¨ p1 2q´1 “ p1 3q
«
p1 3q ¨ p3 4q ¨ p1 3q´1 “ p1 4q GL2 pF2 q Ñ Stv1 ,v2 ,v3 u – S3
ˆ ˙
.. v1 v2 v3
A ÞÑ
. Av1 Av2 Av3
p1 n ´ 1q ¨ pn ´ 1 nq ¨ p1 n ´ 1q´1 “ p1 nq It is easy to check that this map is an isomorphism that takes the generators R, S of GL2 pF2 q
Finally pi jq “ p1 iq ¨ p1 jq ¨ p1 iq´1 P H for 1 ă i ă j ď n. into the generators ρ, σ of S3 (in the notation of example 73): R ÞÑ ρ and S ÞÑ σ.
6 i.e., def
a set such as Q, R, C or Fp “ Z{pZ (p a prime number), where you can perform the four basic operations of addition, subtraction, multiplication and division by a non-zero element.
Since detpA ¨ Bq “ det A ¨ det B, there is a morphism of multiplicative groups Lemma 90 (Steinberg relations). Let rA, Bs “ ABA´1 B ´1 be the commutator of A and B
det : GLpV q kˆ (see example 29). Then for i ‰ j and r ‰ s
T ÞÑ det T Eij pλq ¨ Eij pµq “ Eij pλ ` µq

Here kˆ “ k r t0u. The kernel (see example 62) of this morphism is an important subgroup of rEij pλq, Ejr pµqs “ Eir pλ ¨ µq if i ‰ r and j ‰ r
the general linear group. rEij pλq, Ers pµqs “ In if i ‰ s and j ‰ r
Definition 88. Let k be a field, and V be a k-vector space with dimk V “ n. The special linear
In particular, from the first relation we see that Eij pλq´1 “ Eij p´λq.
group is the subgroup of GLpV q consisting of those linear transformations with determinant 1:
def
SLpV q “ kerpdetq “ tT P GLpV q | det T “ 1u Proof. It is enough to consider the image of the standard basis e1 , . . . , en of kn by the cor-
responding linear transformations. For instance, let us show the second relation. We have
We shall also denote by
def
rEij pλq, Ejr pµqs “ Eij pλqEjr pµqEij p´λqEjr p´µq and therefore
SLn pkq “ tA P GLn pkq | det A “ 1u
)
Eij pλqEjr pµqEij p´λqEjr p´µqper q “ Eij pλqEjr pµqEij p´λqper ´ µej q
17
the corresponding matrix group. After a choice of basis of V , the non-canonical isomorphism
GLpV q – GLn pkq restricts to an isomorphism SLpV q – SLn pkq. “ Eij pλqEjr pµqper ´ µej ` µλei q
20
We can interpret SLn pRq as the symmetry group of the vector space Rn equipped with volume “ Eij pλqper ` µλei q “ er ` µλei
and orientation. For that, recall that the determinant of a real linear transformation has an
9,
which coincides with Eir pλµqper q. Similar calculations show that the images under
important geometric interpretation in terms of “oriented volume”: a real linear transformation
r2
rEij pλq, Ejr pµqs and Eir pλµq of the other vectors of the standard basis also coincide, hence
T : Rn Ñ Rn
these two linear transformations are equal.
• multiplies the volume by | det T |;
be
• preserves orientation whenever det T ą 0, otherwise it reverses orientation.
An important fact about elementary matrices is the
m
Example 89. With respect to the standard basis e1 “ p1, 0q and e2 “ p0, 1q, let T : R2 Ñ R2 be
ve
the linear transformation given by the matrix with determinant ´3
Lemma 91. Let k be a field. The elementary matrices Eij pλq with i ‰ j and λ P k
No
ˆ ˙
1 2 generate the group SLn pkq.
2 1
M
Then T reverses orientation and multiplies the area by 3: in the picture, the square of area 1
determined by e1 , e2 is taken into a parallelogram of area 3, and going around the origin clock- The lemma follows directly from a slight variation of the Gaussian elimination process, which
ST
wise we see that the order of the images T e1 “ p1, 2q, T e2 “ p2, 1q is reversed with respect to reduces any matrix in SLn pkq to the identity matrix by a sequence of elementary matrix oper-
the original order of e1 , e2 . ations on rows/columns. Let A be an n ˆ n matrix with entries in k. Multiplying A by Eij pλq
& corresponds to performing an elementary operation on the rows/columns of A: denoting the i-th
row vector (respectively column vector) of A by ì (respectively by ci ), we have
T e1
T
• Eij pλq ¨ A is the matrix obtained by making the substitution ì Ð ì ` λ ¨ `j in A;
T 3
(E
e2 • A ¨ Eij pλq is the matrix obtained by making the substitution cj Ð cj ` λ ¨ ci in A.

1 T e2
Instead of trying to write some complicated recipe to prove the lemma in general (that no one
T
will be able to follow thanks to the proliferation of indices), let us look at an

AF
p0, 0q e1 p0, 0q
Example 92. Given the matrix
DR
Elementary matrices ¨
0 ´1 ´3
˛
Let k be a field. Given λ P k and 1 ď i, j ď n with i ‰ j, we define the elementary matrix A “ ˝´3 9 5‚ P SL3 pQq
Eij pλq to be the sum of the identity matrix In P GLn pkq with the n ˆ n matrix whose pi, jq-th 4 ´9 2
entry is λ and whose other entries are all 0. For example, for n “ 4 we have
¨ ˛ ¨ ˛ we can perform the following sequence of elementary operations:
1 0 λ 0 1 0 0 0
˚0 1 0 0‹ ˚0 1 0 0 ‹ • Getting 1 at position p1, 1q: since det A ‰ 0, there exists a nonzero element in column
E13 pλq “ ˚
˝0 0 1 0‚
‹ E42 pλq “ ˚
˝0 0 1 0 ‚
‹ 1; choose any row i ‰ 1 such that the pi, 1q-entry is nonzero; in our example, we chose
0 0 0 1 0 λ 0 1 i “ 2 (should there be a single nonzero element in column 1 at position p1, 1q, we would
first add row 1 to row 2 before taking i “ 2). We can then add an appropriate multiple
For i ‰ j and any λ P k, Eij pλq P SLn pkq because this matrix is upper or lower triangular, thus of row i to row 1 in order to get 1 at the p1, 1q-entry:
det Eij pλq “ 1 is the product of the entries in the diagonal. Note also that, with respect to the
standard basis e1 , . . . , en P kn , Eij pλq is the matrix of the linear transformation from kn to kn
¨ ˛ ¨ ˛
0 ´1 ´3 `1 Ð`1 ´ 31 `2 1 ´4 ´ 14 3
given by ˝´3 9 5‚ ˝ ´3 9 5‚
Eij pλqpej q “ ej ` λei Eij pλqper q “ er if r ‰ j 4 ´9 2 4 ´9 2
• Clearing the rest of column 1: add multiples row 1 to the other rows in order to clear Thus, from A ¨ Nij “ Nij ¨ A for all i ‰ j, we conclude that A is a diagonal matrix. Furthermore,
the rest of column 1, getting 0’s at p2, 1q and p3, 1q: all entries of the main diagonal of A are equal: if i ‰ j and Tpi jq denotes the permutation matrix
˛ `2 Ð`2 `3`1 ¨ corresponding to transposition pi jq then
1 ´4 ´ 14 1 ´4 ´ 14
¨ ˛
3 `3 Ð`3 ´4`1 3
0 ´3 ´1
˝´3 9 5 ‚ ˝ ´9 ‚ A P ZpGLn pkqq ùñ Tpi jq ¨ A ¨ Tpi jq
“A
62
4 ´9 2 0 7 3
´1
• Clearing the rest of row 1: add multiples of column 1 to the other columns to clear the But Tpijq ¨ A ¨ Tpijq is the matrix obtained from A by swapping the elements at the positions pi, iq
rest of row 1: and pj, jq.
˛ c2 Ðc2 `4c1 ¨ To summarize: A can only be a scalar multiple cIn of the identity matrix with c ‰ 0, and it is
1 ´4 ´ 14
¨ ˛
3 c3 Ðc3 ` 14
3 1
c 1 0 0
˝0 ´3 ˝0 ´3 easy to see that all such matrices are in the center. Hence there is an isomorphism
´9 ‚ ´9 ‚
62 62
0 7 3
0 7 3
«
kˆ Ñ ZpGLn pkqq
• Recursively repeat the procedure of items (i)–(iii) with the submatrix obtained by deleting c ÞÑ cIn
)
the first row and column, until we get the identity matrix. For our concrete example:
17
– Getting 1 at position p2, 2q: Now consider the subgroup of kˆ consisting of the n-th roots of unity in k:
20
¨ ˛
¨ ˛ 1 0 0 def
1 0 0 `2 Ð`2 ` 4 `
7 3 ˚0 59 ‹
µn pkq “ ta P kˆ | an “ 1u
˝0 ´3 ´9 ‚ 1
9,
˝ 21 ‚
62 With minor modifications of the above proof, we also get an isomorphism
0 7 0 7 62
r2
3 3
«
– Clearing the rest of column 2: µn pkq Ñ ZpSLn pkqq
be
¨ ˛
1 0 0 c ÞÑ cIn
¨ ˛
`3 Ð`3 ´7`2 1 0 0
˚0 1 59 ‹ 59 ‚
m
21 ‚
˝0 1
˝ 21 To see this, simply use the fact that any matrix A P ZpSLn pkqq commutes with the elementary
0 7 62 0 0 1
ve
3 matrices Eij p1q P SLn pkq, i ‰ j, and thus A is diagonal by the very same argument for GLn pkq.
– Clearing the rest of row 2: On the other hand, since transpositions are odd, det Tpi,jq “ ´1 and Tpi,jq R SLn pkq, so we need
No
¨
1 0 0
˛ ¨ ˛ to replace Tpi,jq by linear transformations obtained by multiplying one of the columns of Tpi,jq
59 c
c3 Ðc3 ´ 21 1 0 0
59 ‚
2
˝0 by ´1. Let Spi,jq : kn Ñ kn be the linear transformation given in the standard basis e1 , . . . , en
˝0 1
21
1 0‚
M
by
0 0 1 0 0 1
Spi,jq ei “ éj , Spi,jq ej “ ei , Spi,jq er “ er if r ‰ i, j
ST
From this sequence of elementary operations, we obtain
Conjugating A by Spi,jq with i ‰ j we conclude that A “ cIn for some c P kˆ ; as det A “ 1,
E32 p´7q ¨ E23 p 47 q ¨ E31 p´4q ¨ E21 p3q ¨ E12 p´ 13 q ¨ A ¨ E12 p4q ¨ E13 p 14
3
q ¨ E23 p´ 59
21
q “ I3 we must have cn “ 1 ðñ c P µn pkq, and again it is easy to see that such matrices are in the
Hence & center of SLn pkq.
A “ E12 p 31 q ¨ E21 p´3q ¨ E31 p4q ¨ E23 p´ 74 q ¨ E32 p7q ¨ E23 p 59 q ¨ E13 p´ 14 q ¨ E12 p´4q
T
21 3
Example 94 (Derived subgroups of GLn pkq and SLn pkq). Next we will show that
As generators of SLn pkq, elementary matrices appear in several problems about the general linear
(E
rGLn pkq, GLn pkqs “ SLn pkq, except when n “ 2 and |k| ď 3. In fact, for any n and k, we
group. Let us look at two examples: we will compute the center (example 22) and the derived have an inclusion rGLn pkq, GLn pkqs Ď SLn pkq since
subgroup (see example 29) of GLn pkq and SLn pkq.
T
detrA, Bs “ detpABA´1 B ´1 q “ detpAq detpBq detpAq´1 detpBq´1

Example 93 (Centers of GLn pkq and SLn pkq). Let
AF
`
A “ paij q1ďi,jďn P Z GLn pkq
˘ “1 pas kˆ is abelianq
DR
def To show rGLn pkq, GLn pkqs Ě SLn pkq in cases when n ě 3 or |k| ě 4, it suffices to show that
Nij “ Eij p1q ´ In pi ‰ jq
the elementary matrix Eij pλq with i ‰ j and λ P k is a commutator since by lemma 91 the
In other words, the pi, jq-th entry of Nij is 1 while the others are 0. As A ¨ Eij p1q “ Eij p1q ¨ A, elementary matrices generates SLn pkq. There are two cases:
A also commutes with the (non-invertible) matrices Nij : if i ‰ j,
A ¨ pIn ` Nij q “ pIn ` Nij q ¨ A ðñ A ¨ Nij “ Nij ¨ A • if n ě 3, choose r R ti, ju; then rEir pλq, Erj p1qs “ Eij pλq by the Steinberg relations
(lemma 90).
All columns of A ¨ Nij vanish, except for the j-th column, which equals the i-th column of A.
Similarly, all rows of Nij ¨ A vanish, except for the i-th row, which equals the j-th row of A. For • if n “ 2 and |k| ě 4, choose any µ R t0, ˘1u. Then
instance, if n “ 3 and pi, jq “ p1, 3q then «ˆ ˙ ˜ ¸ff ˆ
1 µ2λ´1
˙
¨ ˛ ¨ ˛ ¨ ˛ µ 0 1 λ
a11 a12 a13 0 0 1 0 0 a11 , “ “ E12 pλq
0 µ´1 0 1 0 1
A ¨ N1,3 “ ˝a21 a22 a23 ‚ ¨ ˝0 0 0‚ “ ˝0 0 a21 ‚
a31 a32 a33 0 0 0 0 0 a31
«ˆ ˙ ˜ ¸ff ˆ
1 0
˙
µ 0 1 0
¨ ˛ ¨ ˛ ¨ ˛ , λµ2 “ “ E21 pλq
0 0 1 a11 a12 a13 a31 a32 a33 0 µ´1 1´µ2
1 λ 1
N1,3 ¨ A “ ˝0 0 0‚ ¨ ˝a21 a22 a23 ‚ “ ˝ 0 0 0 ‚
0 0 0 a31 a32 a33 0 0 0 Similarly, one shows that rSLn pkq : SLn pkqs “ SLn pkq for n ě 3, as well as for n “ 2 if |k| ě 4.
Remark 95. The derived subgroup of SL2 pF2 q “ GL2 pF2 q – S3 (see example 87) is isomorphic (here In P GLn pkq denotes the identity matrix). We can thus regard the orthogonal group as the
to A3 – Z{3Z: in the notation of example 73, ρ “ rσ, ρs, and since S3 contains odd permutations, subgroup of GLn pkq consisting of orthogonal matrices:
rS3 , S3 s ‰ S3 . Then by Lagrange (theorem 52) the only possibility is rS3 , S3 s “ xρy “ A3 .
On pkq “ tA P GLn pkq | At A “ In u
On the other hand, the derived subgroup of SL2 pF3 q is isomorphic to the quaternion group Q8
(example 20). We will later see that P SL2 pF3 q “ SL2 pF3 q{t˘I2 u – A4 (example 215) and An orthogonal matrix A has det A “ ˘1 since At A “ In ùñ pdet Aq2 “ 1. The subgroup of
rA4 , A4 s “ V (example 162). Using the correspondence theorem 150, we conclude that the de- the orthogonal group given by
rived subgroup of SL2 pF3 q is given by the kernel of the composition SL2 pF3 q P SL2 pF3 q –
def
A4 A4 {V – Z{3Z, i.e., SOn pkq “ On pkq X SLn pkq “ tA P GLn pRq | At A “ In and det A “ 1u
" ˆ ˙ ˆ ˙ ˆ ˙ ˆ ˙*
1 0 1 1 2 1 0 2 is called special orthogonal group.
rSL2 pF3 q, SL2 pF3 qs “ ˘ ,˘ ,˘ ,˘ – Q8 In the real case k “ R, we can think of On pRq as the group of all linear transformations
0 1 1 2 1 1 1 0
A : Rn Ñ Rn preserving angle and distance, while SOn pRq consists of those angle and distance
preserving transformations which also preserve orientation.
Orthogonal, unitary and symplectic groups
)
Example 98. The elements of O2 pRq are the rotations and reflections with respect to lines in
17
We can also obtain several important subgroups of the general linear group as symmetries of a
pair pV, Bq consisting of a vector space V and a bilinear form B. the plane R2 . In fact, identifying a linear transformation with its matrix relative to the standard
basis, given a matrix A with column vectors v1 “ pa, bqt and v2 “ pc, dqt , A is orthogonal if and
20
Definition 96. Let k be a field, V be a finite dimensional k-vector space, and B : V ˆ V Ñ k only if v1 , v2 is an orthonormal basis of R2 (with respect to the standard inner product of the
be a bilinear form. We define GLpV, Bq ď GLpV q to be the subgroup consisting of linear trans- previous example) or, equivalently, At A “ I2 :
9,
formations preserving B: $ $
r2
2 2
ˆ ˙ˆ ˙ ˆ ˙ &a ` b “ 1
’ &}v1 } “ 1
’
def a b a c 1 0
GLpV, Bq “ tT P GLpV q | BpT v, T wq “ Bpv, wq for all v, w P V u “ ðñ c2 ` d2 “ 1 ðñ }v2 } “ 1
c d b d 0 1
be
’ ’
ac ` bd “ 0 v1 K v2
% %
We also define the subgroup
m
def
SLpV, Bq “ SLpV q X GLpV, Bq Geometrically, A is the linear transformation taking the orthonormal basis e1 “ p1, 0qt ,
e2 “ p0, 1qt into the orthonormal basis v1 “ pa, bqt , v2 “ pc, dqt . We can write v1 and v2
ve
Example 97 (Orthogonal Group). Let k be a field, and consider the standard inner product in polar form
No
in kn ˆ ˙ ˆ ˙ ˆ ˙ ˆ ˙
` ˘
B px1 , x2 , . . . , xn q; py1 , y2 , . . . , yn q “ x1 y1 ` x2 y2 ` ¨ ¨ ¨ ` xn yn a cos θ c cos ψ
v1 “ “ v2 “ “ pθ, ψ P Rq
b sin θ d sin ψ
The subgroup of GLpkn q consisting of linear transformations A : kn Ñ kn that preserve B is
M
called orthogonal group: From v1 K v2 , ψ “ θ ˘ π{2 (mod 2π), hence v2 “ ˘p´ sin θ, cos θq. Thus there are two types of
ST
def
elements in O2 pRq:
n n n
On pkq “ GLpk , Bq “ tA P GLpk q | BpAv, Awq “ Bpv, wq for all v, w P k u
• a counterclockwise rotation of angle θ around the origin (with det A ą 0, preserving ori-
Let ω1 , . . . , ωn P kn be an orthonormal basis with respect to B: & entation) ˆ ˙
# cos θ ´ sin θ
1 if i “ j A“
T
Bpωi , ωj q “ sin θ cos θ
0 if i ‰ j
(E
• a reflection with respect to the x-axis, followed by a counterclockwise rotation of angle θ

If A P On pkq then around the origin (with det A ă 0, reversing orientation)
T
# ˆ ˙ˆ ˙ ˆ ˙
` ˘ 1 if i “ j cos θ ´ sin θ 1 0 cos θ sin θ
B Aωi , Aωj “ ðñ Aω1 , . . . , Aωn is an orthonormal basis A“ “
AF
0 if i ‰ j sin θ cos θ 0 ´1 sin θ ´ cos θ
Conversely, if A takes an orthonormal basis ω1 , . . . , ωn to an orthonormal basis Aω1 , . . . , Aωn This transformation is a refection with respect to the dashed line in picture below, which
DR
then by linearity BpAv, Awq “ Bpv, wq for all v, w P kn . Summing up: a linear transformation goes through the origin O, and forms an angle θ{2 (counterclockwise) with the x-axis.
A : kn Ñ kn belongs to On pkq if and only if it preserves orthonormal bases (with respect to the
inner product B). P “ r ¨ pcos α, sin αq
Let us look at the corresponding matrix version. Denoting the transpose of matrix M by
M t , and regarding v, w P kn as column vectors, we may rewrite Bpv, wq “ v t ¨ w. Let
ei “ p0, . . . , 0, 1, 0, . . . , 0qt , the n ˆ 1 column vector with 1 in the i-th position. Identifying a α ´ θ{2
linear transformation with its matrix relative to the standard basis e1 , . . . , en (which is an or-
thonormal basis with respect to B), we conclude that A P On pkq if and only if Ae1 , . . . , Aen is O θ{2
an orthonormal basis, that is, if and only if the column vectors of A form an orthonormal basis,
and thus A is an orthogonal matrix: θ
# # ` ˘
1 if i “ j t t 1 if i “ j ApP q “ r ¨ cospθ ´ αq, sinpθ ´ αq
A P On pkq ðñ BpAei , Aej q “ ðñ ei pA Aqej “
0 if i ‰ j 0 if i ‰ j
` ˘
ðñ At A “ In ðñ AAt “ In P 1 “ r ¨ cosp´αq, sinp´αq
To see the last statement, write an arbitrary point of R2 in polar coordinates: and, as in example 97, A P GLn pCq belongs to Un pCq if and only if A preserves orthonormal
bases (also called unitary bases in this context). Denoting the conjugate transpose of matrix M
P “ r ¨ pcos α, sin αq pr ě 0, α P Rq def t
by M ˚ “ M , we may thus think of Un pCq as the group of unitary matrices, i.e., matrices
Reflecting P with respect to the x-axis, we get the point whose column vectors form a unitary basis with respect to Hstd or, equivalently, A˚ A “ In (or
` ˘ AA˚ “ In ):
P 1 “ r ¨ cosp´αq, sinp´αq
Un pCq “ tA P GLn pCq | A˚ A “ In u
Applying a counterclockwise rotation of angle θ around the origin, we get the image of P by A: ˚
Note that A A “ In ùñ det A ¨ det A “ 1 ðñ | det A| “ 1 and thus the determinant restricts
`
ApP q “ r ¨ cospθ ´ αq, sinpθ ´ αq
˘ to a morphism det : Un pCq Ñ S 1 (see example 18), whose kernel is
def
Therefore SUn pCq “ Un pCq X SLn pCq “ tA P GLn pCq | A˚ A “ In and det A “ 1u
θ α ` pθ ´ αq the dashed line is the bisector of the
“ ùñ Example 100. Directly from the definitions, we get
2 2 angle formed by P , O, ApP q
In particular, the subgroup of orientation preserving orthogonal transformations of the plane R2 U1 pCq “ S 1 and SU1 pCq “ t1u
)
17
is the group of rotations centered at p0, 0q: Next we will obtain the explicit description
20
#ˆ ˙ ˇˇ + "ˆ ˙ *
α ´β
ˇ
cos θ sin θ ˇ
SU2 pCq “ P GL2 pCq ˇ |α|2 ` |β|2 “ 1
ˇ
SO2 pRq “ ˇθPR
sin θ ´ cos θ ˇ β α
9,
In other words, SU2 pCq is the subgroup of Hˆ consisting of norm 1 quaternions. Thus geomet-
r2
Example 99 (Unitary Group). The complex version of a bilinear symmetric form is called a
rically SU2 pCq is the 3-dimensional unit sphere in R4 of equation a2 ` b2 ` c2 ` d2 “ 1.
hermitian form7 . Given a finite dimensional C-vector space V , we define a hermitian form to
Given the matrix
be
be a function H : V ˆ V Ñ C satisfying ˆ
α γ
˙
A“ P GL2 pCq
• H is C-linear in the first variable; and β δ
m
• Hpv, wq “ Hpw, vq for all v, w P V we have that A P SU2 pCq if and only if det A “ 1 and
ve
form8 ,
ˆ ˙ ˆ ˙
(here the bar denotes complex conjugation). In particular, H is a sesquilinear that is, δ ´γ α β
A˚ A “ I2 ðñ A´1 “ A˚ ðñ
No
one that is linear in the first coordinate but semilinear in the second: “
´β α γ δ
Hpv, α1 w1 ` α2 w2 q “ α1 ¨ Hpv, w1 q ` α2 ¨ Hpv, w2 q pv, wj P V, αj P Cq Hence δ “ α, γ “ ´β and det A “ 1 ðñ |α|2 ` |β|2 “ 1, as desired.
M
(without the complex conjugation, this would be the definition of C-linearity in the second coor-
Example 101 (Symplectic group). Let k be a field, and V be a k-vector space equipped with
ST
dinate). Note also that Hpv, vq P R for all v P V , which follows from Hpv, vq “ Hpv, vq. a symplectic form ω : V ˆ V Ñ k, i.e., a function9 which is
We define the unitary group to be the subgroup of GLpV q consisting of those linear transfor-
mations that preserve H: • bilinear (linear in each argument separately);
def
& • alternating: ωpv, vq “ 0 for all v P V ; and
U pV, Hq “ tT P GLpV q | HpT v, T wq “ Hpv, wq for all v, w P V u
T
• non-degenerate: if ωpu, vq “ 0 for all v P V then u “ 0.
(E
The special unitary group is defined in the usual way: The symplectic group SppV, ωq is the subgroup of GLpV q consisting of those linear transforma-
def tions that preserve the symplectic form ω:
SU pV, Hq “ U pV, Hq X SLpV q “ tT P U pV, Hq | det T “ 1u
T
def
SppV, ωq “ GLpV, ωq
In the same manner as symmetric bilinear forms allow us to define lengths and angles in a real
AF
vector space, hermitian forms allow us to define analogous notions for a complex vector space. Let n “ 2m, and write a vector in k2m “ km ˆ km as pq, pq with q “ pq1 , . . . , qm q P km and
As in the real case, in this geometric context we usually work with positive definite hermitian p “ pp1 , . . . , pm q P km . The standard symplectic form in k2m is defined to be
DR
forms, i.e., those satisfying Hpv, vq ě 0 for all av P V , and Hpv, vq “ 0 ðñ v “ 0. In this
ˆ ˙
ÿ q qi1 ÿ
det i
` ˘
case, we can define the length of v as }v} “ Hpv, vq. Summing up, we should think of the ω pq, pq; pq1 , p1 q “ 1 “ pqi p1i ´ pi qi1 q
pi pi
unitary group as a complex version of the orthogonal group: U pV, Hq is the group of C-linear 1ďiďm 1ďiďm
transformations T : V Ñ V that preserve “H-angles and H-lengths”.
Writing the vectors of k2m
as column vectors, and letting
In V “ Cn we have the standard hermitian form ˆ ˙
def 0m Im
` ˘ def J “ P GL2m pkq p0m is the m ˆ m zero matrix q
Hstd pz1 , z2 , . . . , zn q; pw1 , w2 , . . . , wn q “ z1 w1 ` z2 w2 ` ¨ ¨ ¨ ` zn wn Ím 0m
or simply Hstd pv, wq “ v t w in matrix notation (regarding v, w as n ˆ 1 column vectors). Note we may rewrite ωpv, wq “ v t Jw, and Sppk2m , ωq can thus be identified with the group of sym-
that Hstd is positive definite. We abbreviate plectic matrices, i.e., matrices in
def def
Un pCq “ U pCn , Hstd q Sp2m pkq “ tA P GL2m pkq | At JA “ Ju
7 afterthe French mathematician Charles Hermite (1822–1901)
8 sesqui= once and a half, for example sesquicentennial = 150 years
9 more concisely, ω is a non-degenerate element of pV ^ V q_ where W _ denotes the dual space of W
For example, it is easy to see that Sp2 pkq “ SL2 pkq. One can show that Sp2m pkq ď SL2m pkq In the coordinate system pq̃, p̃q P R2 the Hamiltonian is
for all m, so there is no need to create a “special symplectic group”.
The symplectic group Sp2m pRq has great importance in Physics since it is the group of sym- Kpdq̃ ´ bp̃q2 pćq̃ ` ap̃q2
H̃pq̃, p̃q “ Hpdq̃ ´ bp̃, ćq̃ ` ap̃q “ `
metries of mechanical systems described by Hamilton’s equations: letting t stand for time, 2 2M
q1 , . . . , qm , p1 , . . . , pm for the coordinates of a point in R2m , and H “ Hpq, p, tq for the Hamil- Thus, on the one hand,
tonian, these equations are
ˆ ˙ ˆ ˙ ˆ ˙ ˆ ˙ˆ ˙ ˜ BH ¸
dqi BH dpi BH d q̃ a b d q a b 0 1 Bq
“ and “´ pi “ 1, 2, . . . , mq “ ¨ “ p˚q
dt Bpi dt Bqi dt p̃ c d dt p c d ´1 0 BH
Bp
or, in more suggestive matrix notation,
˜ BH ¸ On the other hand, by the chain rule, we get
ˆ ˙
d q Bq ¨
BH̃
˛ ˜
“ J BH d ¨ BH ´ c ¨ BH ˙ ˜ BH ¸
¸ ˆ
dt p B q̃ ‚“ Bq Bp d ć Bq
Bp ˝ “
)
BH̃ ´b ¨ BH ` a ¨ BH ´b a BH
17
Bq
Bp̃ Bp Bp
where BH
Bq
BH
“ p Bq BH t
, . . . , Bq q and similarly for BH
Bp
.
1 m
Multiplying the last relation by J and comparing with equation p˚q we get
20
Given an invertible linear transformation of coordinates (which may depend on q, p, but not on
t) ¨ ˛
ˆ ˙ ˆ ˙ ˙ BH̃ ˙ ˜ BH ¸ ˆ ˙ ˜ BH ¸
q̃ q
ˆ ˆ ˙ˆ ˙ˆ ˆ ˙
0 1 ˝ Bq̃ ‚ 0 1 d ć a b 0 1 d q̃
9,
“ Apq, pq ¨ pApq, pq P GL2m pkqq Bq Bq
p̃ p “ “ “
´1 0 BH̃ ´1 0 ´b a BH c d ´1 0 BH dt p̃
r2
Bp̃ Bp Bp
writing H̃pq̃, p̃, tq “ Hpq, p, tq we may ask ourselves when Apq, pq preserves Hamilton’s equa-
tions, i.e., when which shows that the form of Hamilton’s equations is preserved when rewritten in terms of the
be
¨ ˛
ˆ ˙ BH̃ new coordinates pq̃, p̃q.
d q̃ Bq̃
m
“J˝ ‚
dt p̃ BH̃
ve
Bp̃
The answer: if and only if Apq, pq P Sp2m pRq for all pq, pq P R2m .
Dihedral Group
No
For example, consider the following spring-mass system, where M stands for the mass of the The dihedral group Dn is the “finite version” of the orthogonal group O2 pRq, and consists of
object and K, for the elastic constant of the spring. Disregard friction or anything in the real the symmetries of a regular n-gon. Before formally describing Dn , let us see a concrete example
world that only serves to make equations complicated. for n “ 4.
M
ST
Example 102 (Square symmetries). Consider the square Q Ď R2 of vertices p˘1, 0q and
K p0, ˘1q. A symmetry of Q is a linear transformation T : R2 Ñ R2 preserving Q. In particular,
M & T has to map the consecutive vertices e1 “ p1, 0q, e2 “ p0, 1q into two consecutive vertices of Q,
that is, into another orthonormal basis of R2 . Then T P O2 pRq, and by example 98, T is either
a reflection or a rotation. Now it is easy to check that there are exactly 8 possibilities:
T
(i) T is a counterclockwise rotation of 0˝ , 90˝ , 180˝ or 270˝ (with center at the origin).
(E
We can describe the state of the system in terms of two coordinates q, p where q is the position (ii) T is a reflection with respect to the line going through the origin forming angles of 0˝ ,
of the mass, and p is the moment. The Hamiltonian is given by the total energy, and in this 45˝ , 90˝ or 135˝ (counterclockwise) with the x-axis (i.e. the lines going through opposite
T
case it is independent of t (since the total energy does not change over time): vertices, or midpoints of opposite sides).
AF
Kq 2 p2 Starting from p1, 0q, number the vertices of Q from 1 to 4 counterclockwise. Each T can be iden-
Hpq, pq “ `
2 on lo2M tified with the corresponding permutation of the vertices of Q. Thus the dihedral group D4 can
DR
loomo omoon
potential kinetic be regarded both as a subgroup of O2 pRq as well as a subgroup of S4 . Let ρ be the 90˝ rotation
above, we get equivalent representations
Thus Hamilton’s equations for this system are
ˆ ˙
˜ dq ¸ ˆ ˙ ˜ ¸ # dq p 0 ´1
dt 0 1 Kq dt
“ M ρ“ P O2 pRq or ρ “ p1234q P S4
“ ¨ ðñ 1 0
dp ´1 0 p dp
dt M dt
“ ´Kq
Similarly, the reflection σ with respect to the x-axis can be represented as
(note that by plugging one equation in the other, we find the familiar Newtonian equation ˆ ˙
2 def 1 0
M ¨ ddt2q “ ´Kq, that one gets by considering the forces in this spring-mass system). σ “ P O2 pRq or σ “ p24q P S4
0 ´1
Now consider a linear transformation of coordinates in SL2 pRq “ Sp2 pRq (here, the matrix is
independent of q, p, t) These two elements10 ρ and σ generate the dihedral group D4 : there are 4 rotations id, ρ, ρ2 , ρ3
and 4 reflections σ, ρσ, ρ2 σ, ρ3 σ (or σ, σρ3 , σρ2 , σρ), whose axes are the dashed lines in the fol-
ˆ ˙ ˆ ˙ ˆ ˙ ˆ ˙ ˆ ˙ ˆ ˙
q̃ a b q q d ´b q̃
“ ¨ ðñ “ ¨ lowing picture:
p̃ c d p p ć a p̃
10 from the Greek, ρtation and reflecσion
ρ2 σ “ p13q “ σρ2 Free group
ρ3 σ “ p14qp23q “ σρ ρσ “ p12qp34q “ σρ3
Let a, b be two letters (what else would they be?). The free group F “ xa, by in a, b is the
2 “largest” group generated by a, b: its elements are words (i.e. finite sequences) in the “alphabet”
ta, b, a´1 , b´1 u where the pairs of symbols a, a´1 or b, b´1 do not appear consecutively. Such
3 1 σ “ p24q words are called reduced. The product in F is the concatenation of words followed by the removal
of subsequences of consecutive letters a, a´1 and b, b´1 . The empty word H is the identity el-
ement of this group. The inverse of a word is the word obtained by the mirror rule (lemma 7).
Here is the list of all words in F of length up to 3:
4
length words in F
Summing up, we may write 0 H (empty word)
D4 “ xρ, σy “ tid, ρ, ρ2 , ρ3 , σ, ρσ, ρ2 σ, ρ3 σu
)
1 a, a´1 , b, b´1
17
2 3 2 3
“ tid, ρ, ρ , ρ , σ, σρ, σρ , σρ u a2 “ aa, ab, ab´1 , a´2 “ a´1 a´1 , a´1 b, a´1 b´1 , ba,
2
20
ba´1 , b2 “ bb, b´1 a, b´1 a´1 , b´2 “ b´1 b´1
For n P N, Dn is the symmetry group of the regular n-gon with vertices pcos 2kπ{n, sin 2kπ{nq
(k “ 0, 1, . . . , n ´ 1). Explicitly, Dn ď O2 pRq is generated by the counterclockwise rotation ρ of a3 “ aaa, a2 b “ aab, a2 b´1 “ aab´1 , aba, aba´1 ,
9,
angle 2π{n and the reflection σ with respect to the x-axis, given in the standard basis by the ab2 “ abb, ab´1 a, ab´1 a´1 , ab´2 “ ab´1 b´1 ,
r2
matrices ˆ ˙ ˆ ˙ a´3 “ a´1 a´1 a´1 , a´2 b “ a´1 a´1 b,
def cos 2π{n ´ sin 2π{n def 1 0 a´2 b´1 “ a´1 a´1 b´1 , a´1 ba, a´1 ba´1 ,
ρ “ σ “
a´1 b2 “ a´1 bb, a´1 b´1 a, a´1 b´1 a´1 ,
be
sin 2π{n cos 2π{n 0 ´1
A direct calculation shows that these generators satisfy the relations (which characterize the 3 a´1 b´2 “ a´1 b´1 b´1 , ba2 “ baa, bab, bab´1 ,
m
dihedral group) ba´2 “ ba´1 a´1 , ba´1 b, ba´1 b´1 , b2 a “ bba,
b2 a´1 “ bba´1 , b3 “ bbb, b´1 a2 “ b´1 aa, b´1 ab,
ve
σρσ “ ρ´1 σ 2 “ id ρn “ id b´1 ab´1 , b´1 a´2 “ b´1 a´1 a´1 , b´1 a´1 b,
No
b´1 a´1 b´1 , b´2 a “ b´1 b´1 a, b´2 a´1 “ b´1 b´1 a´1 ,
b´3 “ b´1 b´1 b´1
As σ “ σ ´1 , the first relation just states that conjugating ρ by σ we get ρ´1 .
M
The above relations show that Dn has |Dn | “ 2n elements, namely
Note that there are no “relations between the letters a, b” that simplify the words in F , that is,
• n rotations id, ρ, ρ2 , . . . , ρn´1 ;
ST
there is no word other than the empty one which represents the identity element of the group F .
• σ, ρσ, ρ2 σ, . . . , ρn´1 σ (which can also be written σ, σρn´1 , σρn´2 , . . . , σρ) Therefore the number of words grows exponentially fast: for n ě 1, there are 4 ¨ 3n´1 words in
F (there are 4 choices for the first letter, and 3 for each of the following letters, which must be
Alternatively, looking at the corresponding vertex permutations of this n-gon, we may also regard & distinct from the inverse of the letter right before).
Dn as a subgroup of Sn : let m “ rn{2s (the smallest integer greater than or equal to n{2), then
On the other hand, in a group that is not free, we can also form words with group elements, but
the rotation ρ and the reflection σ correspond to the cycles
T
some nontrivial words can be equal to the identity element. For example, in the multiplicative
(E
ρ “ p1 2 . . . nq σ “ p2, nqp3, n ´ 1q . . . pm, n ´ m ` 2q group t1, ´1u, the identity element is represented by the word p´1qp´1q of length 2.
The free group in more than two generators is defined similarly. We denote by F pXq the free
Example 103 (Center of Dn ). For n ě 3, let us show that the center (example 22) of Dn is group generated by the set X, that is, the group consisting of words whose alphabet are the
T
# elements of X and their inverses. The importance of the free group will be seen later (see defini-
AF
` ˘ tidu if n is odd
Z Dn “ tion 178): for example, from F “ xa, by, we can obtain all other “smaller” groups generated by
tid, ρn{2 u if n is even two elements through quotients.
DR
Given g P Dn , there are two possibilities:

Example 104. In the free group F “ xa, by generated by a, b,
• g “ ρi is a rotation (i “ 0, 1, . . . , n ´ 1). As rotations commute
˘ with each other, and
`
a reflection is the product of a rotation and σ, g “ ρi P Z Dn if and only if σ ¨ ρi “ α “ aabbba´1 b “ a2 b3 a´1 b
ρi ¨ σ ðñ σ ¨ ρi ¨ σ ´1 “ ρi . From the conjugating relation σρσ “ ρ´1 ðñ κσ pρq “ ρ´1 β “ ba´1 baabb “ ba´1 ba2 b2
we get
γ “ ba´1 b
σρi σ ´1 “ ρi ðñ κσ pρi q “ ρi ðñ κσ pρqi “ ρi ðñ ρí “ ρi ðñ ρ2i “ id
we have, for instance,
Hence n | 2i (“least divides”, lemma 33). If n is odd, i “ 0 and g “ id; if n is even, i “ 0
β ´1 “ b´2 a´2 b´1 ab´1
or i “ n{2, hence g “ id or g “ ρn{2 .
• g “ ρì σ is αβ “ a2 b3 a´1 b2 a´1 ba2 b2
˘ a reflection (i “ 0, 1, . . . , n ´ 1). Let us show that ρg ‰ gρ and therefore
g R Z Dn . In fact, suppose otherwise; then αγ ´1 “ pa2 b3 a´1 bq ¨ pb´1 ab´1 q “ a2 b2
ρg “ gρ ðñ ρi`1 σ “ ρi σρ ðñ ρi`1 “ ρi ¨ pσρσq ðñ ρi`1 “ ρi´1 ðñ ρ2 “ id Note also that α and β are conjugate:
which is impossible since n ě 3. β “ γ ¨ α ¨ γ ´1 “ pba´1 bq ¨ α ¨ pba´1 bq´1
Thus β is a cyclic shift of α: Naturally, we will show that a free group G on X must be isomorphic to F pXq. But first let us
give another example of a disguised free group.
α“ aabb ba´1 b β“ ba´1 b aabb
Example 108 (Ping Pong Lemma). 11 The subgroup of GL2 pRq generated by the matrices
This is a general fact: two words which are cyclic shifts of one another are conjugate. It is ˆ ˙ ˆ ˙
enough to conjugate one word by an appropriate “suffix”. 1 2 1 0
A“ and B “
0 1 2 1
It is not always the case that a free group is explicitly given with its defining alphabet. An
example of a disguised free group is Z: if we let X “ ttu, the map n ÞÑ tn defines an isomorphism is free on tA, Bu. In fact, we have
between Z and F pXq. This example motivates us to give a more general definition of a free ˆ ˙ ˆ ˙
1 2n 1 0
group: An “ and Bn “
0 1 2n 1
Definition 105. Let G be a group, and X “ txi P G | i P Iu be a subset of G. A word in X is
for every integer n, as the reader will certainly check using his/her intuitive and inductive pow-
an expression of the form
ers. Consider the disjoint subsets of the plane
)
xεi11 xεi22 ¨ ¨ ¨ xεinn , (3)
17
"ˆ ˙ * "ˆ ˙ *
x x
ˇ ˇ
def def
for some n P N, i1 , . . . , in P I and εk “ ˘1 for k P t1, . . . , nu. If n “ 0 we say the word is X1 “ P R2 ˇ |x| ą |y| and X2 “ P R2 ˇ |x| ă |y| .
ˇ ˇ
20
empty; by definition, the empty word is equal to the identity element 1 of G. Finally, we say y y
that the word (3) is reduced if, for all k P t1, . . . , n ´ 1u, ik “ ik`1 ñ εk “ εk`1 . as in the following picture:
9,
Note that, given a word (3), we can transform it into a reduced (possibly empty) word by suc-
r2
cessively removing occurrences of symbols of the form xi x´1
i and x´1
i xi . X2
be
Lemma 106. Let G be a group, and let X “ txi P G | i P Iu be a generator set of G. The X1 X1
following conditions are equivalent:
m
(i) Each g P G can be uniquely written as a reduced word in X. That is, there is a reduced X2
ve
word in X equal to g and, if
No
g “ xεi11 xεi22 ¨ ¨ ¨ xεinn “ xδj11 xδj22 ¨ ¨ ¨ xδjm
m
, We have An pX2 q Ď X1 and B n pX1 q Ď X2 for any integer n ‰ 0, another computation (or
drawing) that we will leave, without blushing, to the interested reader (the uninterested reader
where the two words above are reduced, then m “ n, ik “ jk and εk “ δk for all
M
may consider other activities to do, such as fishing). The idea is that the subgroups generated
k P t1, . . . , nu. by A and B “ping-pong” the sets X1 and X2 from one side to the other:
ST
(ii) A reduced non-empty word in X cannot be equal to identity element 1 of G. B n pn‰0q
“ping”
Proof. The implication piq ñ piiq is immediate, since a word representing 1 is the empty one. &
Conversely, if piiq holds and g P G, then there exists a reduced word in X equal to g, since X X1 X2
T
generates G and we can reduce any word in X. Suppose that, for a certain g P G, g ‰ 1,
“pong”
(E
g “ xεi11 xεi22 ¨ ¨ ¨ xεinn “ xδj11 xδj22 ¨ ¨ ¨ xδjm

m
, An pn‰0q
where the above words are non-empty, reduced and distinct. If i1 “ j1 and ε1 “ δ1 then we may Now take a reduced non-empty word p in tA, Bu. Let us prove that p is not be the identity
T
cancel out the first letter of each word, and write matrix. If the first and last letters of p are equal to A˘1 , we know that p cannot be the identity
AF
since p maps X2 to a subset of X1 . For instance,

xεi22 ¨ ¨ ¨ xεinn “ xδj22 ¨ ¨ ¨ xδjm
m
pong ping
DR
We keep canceling out the first letter on both sides for as long as it is possible. Since we are A3 B ´2 A5 B 7 A´1 pX2 q Ď A3 B ´2 A5 B 7 pX1 q Ď A3 B ´2 A5 pX2 q
assuming the two words to be distinct, without loss of generality we can then suppose that pong ping pong
Ď A3 B ´2 pX1 q Ď A3 pX2 q Ď X1
xεi11 xεi22 ¨ ¨ ¨ xεinn “ xδj11 xδj22 ¨ ¨ ¨ xδjm
m
If the first letter of p is A˘1 and the last is B ˘1 , say,

with i1 ‰ j1 or δ1 “ ´ε1 . In that case, we get
´ε1 δ1
p “ An qB m pm ‰ 0, n ‰ 0q
δm
1 “ x´εn
in ¨ ¨ ¨ xi1 xj1 ¨ ¨ ¨ xjn .
with q a word in tA, Bu which does not begin with A˘1 and does not end with B ˘1 , let k be an
But the right-hand side of the above equality is non-empty, and it is also reduced since x´ε
i1
1
and integer other than 0 of ń. The word
xδj11 do not cancel each other. Ak pA´k “ Ak`n qB m A´k
Definition 107. A group G is called free on X Ď G if X is a generator set of G and one of is reduced and, as in the previous case, cannot be the identity. Therefore p cannot be the identity
the equivalent conditions (therefore both) of the previous lemma is satisfied. either. The remaining cases are similar.
11 or should we perhaps call it the “Table Tennis Lemma”?
Lemma 110. If G is free on X then G – F pXq.
Theorem 109 (Universal property of the free group). Let G be a group, and let
X Ď G. Let i : X ãÑ G be the inclusion map. Then G is free on X if and only if the fol- Proof. Let
lowing universal property holds: for every group H and every function ϕ : X Ñ H, there i : X ãÑ G j : X ãÑ F pXq
exists a unique group morphism ϕ˚ : G Ñ H such that the diagram below commutes,
be the inclusion maps. First notice that both G and F pXq are free on X, thus satisfying the
that is, ϕ “ ϕ˚ ˝ i:
i
universal property of the previous theorem. Keeping the notation of that theorem, taking H “ G
X G and ϕ “ i, by uniqueness the identity is the unique morphism G Ñ G that extends the inclusion
D!ϕ˚ i : X ãÑ G; the same holds for F pXq instead of G.
ϕ
Now consider the diagrams
H
i j
(we say that ϕ˚ extends ϕ). In other wordsa , G is free on X if and only if, for every X G X F pXq
group H, the natural map j ˚
j i i˚
Ñ HX
)
HompG, Hq ãÑ F pXq G
17
ϕ˚ ÞÑ ϕ˚ ˝ i
If i˚ and j˚
are the extensions of i and j given by the universal property, “pasting the two
20
is a bijection. Here H X is the set of all functions ϕ : X Ñ H. diagrams together” we see that i˚ ˝ j ˚ : G Ñ G extends i : X ãÑ G, hence i˚ ˝ j ˚ “ id by the
above remark.
9,
a no pun intended!
X
r2
i j i
be
Proof. Let G be a free group on X, and ϕ : X Ñ H be a function. Given g P G, there is a single
reduced word xε11 ¨ ¨ ¨ xεnn (with xi P X and εi “ ˘1q such that g “ xε11 ¨ ¨ ¨ xεnn . For this g we G F pXq G
j˚ i˚
m
define
def
ϕ˚ pgq “ ϕpx1 qε1 ¨ ¨ ¨ ϕpxn qεn . Similarly, j ˚ ˝ i˚ : F pXq Ñ F pXq extends j : X ãÑ F pXq and thus j ˚ ˝ i˚ “ id. Then i˚ and j ˚
ve
(4)
We claim that ϕ˚ is a morphism, otherwise it would have been a waste of time to define ϕ˚ the define isomorphisms between G and F pXq.
No
way we did. There is just one thing to check: given two elements g, h P G and their respective
The next result shows that any group can be “covered” by a free group (in group jargon, every
reduced words, parts of the product word gh can be reduced. So we write
group is a homomorphic image of a free group).
M
δ
g“ xε11 ¨ ¨ ¨ xεmm y1δ1 ¨ ¨ ¨ ykk pxi , yj P Xq
Theorem 111. Given a group G, there is a free group F and a surjective morphism F G.
ST
´δ εm`1
h“ yk k ¨ ¨ ¨ y1´δ1 xm`1 ¨ ¨ ¨ xεnn pεi , δj “ ˘1q
where the right sides of the above equalities are reduced words in X, with xm ‰ xm`1 or Proof. By the universal property of free groups, the identity function id : G Ñ G extends to a
δ morphism F pGq G, which is surjective12 .
xm “ xm`1 , εm “ εm`1 . Eventually, some of the subwords xε11 ¨ ¨ ¨ xεmm , y1δ1 ¨ ¨ ¨ ykk and &
εm`1 ε1 εm εm`1
xm`1 ¨ ¨ ¨ xn may be empty. Hence gh is equal to the reduced word x1 ¨ ¨ ¨ xm xm`1 ¨ ¨ ¨ xεnn ,
εn
Using the universal property, it is easy to show that if X1 and X2 are sets such that |X1 | “ |X2 |
T
and we have (i.e., there is a bijection between X1 and X2 ) then F pX1 q – F pX2 q. The converse is also true in
(E
m n
ź ź general, but we will only prove it for finite sets.13
ϕ˚ pghq “ ϕpxi qεi ϕpxi qεi
i“1 i“m`1 Proposition 112. If X1 and X2 are finite sets such that F pX1 q – F pX2 q then |X1 | “ |X2 |.
T
˜ ¸
m k k n
AF
ź ź ź ź
“ ϕpxi qεi ϕpyi qδi ϕpyk`1í q´δk`1í ϕpxi qεi «
Proof. Fix an isomorphism φ : F pX1 q Ñ F pX2 q. By the universal property, we have a composi-
i“1 i“1 i“1 i“m`1 tion of bijections
DR
˜ ¸˜ ¸
m k k n
ź ź ź ź pZ{2ZqX2 ãÑ
Ñ HompF pX2 q, Z{2Zq ãÑ Ñ pZ{2ZqX1
Ñ HompF pX1 q, Z{2Zq ãÑ
“ ϕpxi qεi ϕpyi qδi ϕpyk`1í q´δk`1í ϕpxi qεi
i“1 i“1 i“1 i“m`1 f ÞÑ f ˝ φ
˚ ˚
“ ϕ pgqϕ phq, Comparing the cardinalities on the left and right sides, we have 2|X1 | “ 2|X2 | ðñ |X1 | “ |X2 |.
showing that ϕ˚ is a morphism. In addition, the definition of ϕ˚ given by the equation (4) is
the only one that makes the diagram commute.
Now suppose that G satisfies the universal property for X Ď G. By the proof of the lemma Given the above proposition (in the general case), we can define the rank of a free group G as the
« cardinality of any set X such that G – F pXq. If the set X is finite with n elements, it is common
below, there is an isomorphism φ : F pXq Ñ G which restricts to the identity map on X. Since
F pXq is clearly free on X, so is G. to write Fn instead of F pXq, since the isomorphism class of F pXq is completely determined by
n.
The next result is a prototype of the fact that “objects defined by universal properties are unique Obviously, if n ď m then there is an injective morphism Fn ãÑ Fm . The somewhat surprising
up to isomorphism”. fact is that the opposite also holds if n ě 2, which follows from
12 the group F pGq is “too big”. It is enough to consider a generating set X Ď G and extend the inclusion X ãÑ G to obtain F pXq G
13 Had we time, money, and proper disposition, we would show this more general version of the proposition and, who knows, it might even be promoted to a theorem.
Theorem 113. There is an injective group morphism F pNq ãÑ F2 . It is easy to see that „ is an equivalence relation (see observation 57) on the set of all paths from
x0 to x1 :
Proof. In F pta, buq define
def (i) (Reflexivity) γ „ γ via the “constant” homotopy ht psq “ γpsq for all t P r0, 1s;
xn “ bń abn for n ě 0.
def (ii) (Symmetry) if γ „ δ via the homotopy hps, tq then δ „ γ via the homotopy hps, 1 ´ tq that
If X “ tx0 , x1 , x2 , . . .u, we will show that the subgroup generated by X is a free subgroup on “reverses the deformation time”;
X of F pta, buq, which will prove the theorem.
Let p “ xεi11 ¨ ¨ ¨ xεinn be a non-empty reduced word in X, with εj “ ˘1. Then p is also a word in (iii) (Transitivity) if γ „ δ via the homotopy gps, tq, and δ „ ζ via the homotopy hps, tq then
ta, bu: γ „ ζ via the homotopy
p “ bí1 aε1 bi1 bí2 aε2 bi2 ¨ ¨ ¨ bín aεn bin #
gps, 2tq if 0 ď t ď 1{2
Since p is a reduced word in X, for each j P t1, . . . , n ´ 1u either ij ‰ ij`1 or εj ` εj`1 ‰ 0. In jps, tq “
hps, 2t ´ 1q if 1{2 ď t ď 1
any case, this condition is sufficient to conclude that the reduced form of p as a word in ta, bu is
not empty, that is, p ‰ 1 in F pta, buq. Hence the subgroup of F pta, buq generated by X is free on obtained by “pasting together” the two previous homotopies, where the deformations occur
)
X.
17
“twice faster”: in the first half-time j deforms γ into δ, and in the second half-time δ is
deformed into ζ.
20
Fundamental group
Definition 115. Let X be a topological space, and let γ, δ : r0, 1s Ñ X be two paths such that
In geometry, an important group is the fundamental group of a space X, a group that “mea-
9,
γp1q “ δp0q (i.e., the end point of γ is the initial one of δ). We define the concatenation γ ˚ δ
sures the number of holes” in X. We begin with some general definitions. of γ and δ (in that order) as the path
r2
Definition 114. Let X be a topological space (for example, some region in Rn ). Let x0 , x1 P X
#
def γp2sq if 0 ď s ď 1{2
be
be two points. pγ ˚ δqpsq “
δp2s ´ 1q if 1{2 ď s ď 1
(i) A path14 γ from x0 to x1 is a continuous function γ : r0, 1s Ñ X such that γp0q “ x0 and
m
γp1q “ x1 . In other words, γ ˚ δ is the path obtained by traversing γ twice as fast in the first half time,
ve
(ii) Let γ and δ be two paths from x0 to x1 . A homotopy h between γ and δ is a “continuous followed by δ, also traversed twice as fast in the second half time.
No
deformation of γ into δ within X.” More precisely, h : r0, 1s ˆ r0, 1s Ñ X is a continuous
function satisfying
M
(a) hps, 0q “ γpsq at “instant t “ 0” (start of deformation); γp0q δp1q
0 1{2 1 γ˚δ γp1q “ δp0q
ST
(b) hps, 1q “ δpsq at “instant t “ 1” (end of deformation);
(c) for any “intermediate instant t P r0, 1s”, s ÞÑ hps, tq is a path from x0 to x1 , that is,
hp0, tq “ x0 and hp1, tq “ x1 . & Definition 116. (i) A pointed topological space is a pair pX, x0 q where X is a topological
space, and x0 P X (called the base point of pX, x0 q).
r0, 1s ˆ r0, 1s
T
(ii) Given two pointed topological spaces pX, x0 q and pY, y0 q, a continuous function between
(E
them is a continuous function f : X Ñ Y which preserves base points: f px0 q “ y0 .

(iii) A loop in a pointed topological space pX, x0 q is a path γ : r0, 1s Ñ X that begins and
T
h ends at the base point: γp0q “ γp1q “ x0 . Equivalently, a loop is a continuous function
γ : pS 1 , 1q Ñ pX, x0 q of pointed spaces (here S 1 denotes the unit circle |z| “ 1 in the
AF
X complex plane, as in example 19).

δ
DR
Let pX, x0 q be a pointed topological space, and ΩpX, x0 q be the set of all loops in pX, x0 q. We
denote by rγs the class of γ with respect to the homotopy equivalence relation, and the quotient
x0 x1 set ΩpX, x0 q{„ by
def ΩpX, x0 q ˇ (
γ π1 pX, x0 q “ “ rγs ˇ γ : r0, 1s Ñ X continuous, γp0q “ γp1q “ x0
„
Concatenation in ΩpX, x0 q induces a binary operation in π1 pX, x0 q:
We will often write ht psq instead of hps, tq as well. def
rγs ¨ rδs “ rγ ˚ δs prγs, rδs P π1 pX, x0 qq
(iii) Two paths γ and δ from x0 to x1 are homotopic (notation: γ „ δ) if there exists a homo-
topy h : r0, 1s ˆ r0, 1s Ñ X between them, i.e., if γ can be “continuously deformed” into δ It is easy to check that this operation is well-defined (i.e., independent of class representatives):
within X. if rγ 1 s “ rγs and rδ 1 s “ rδs then rγ 1 ˚ δ 1 s “ rγ ˚ δs.
14 Think of γ as the path in X followed by an insect during 1 second: γpsq is its position at instant s. The fact that γ is continuous means that the insect cannot teleport itself.
15 The reparametrization ϕ makes us traverse the loop as if we were drunk. We may even step back once or twice, but the fact that ϕp0q “ 0 and ϕp1q “ 1 forces us to follow γ right through.
Lemma 117. π1 pX, x0 q is a group with the operation induced by concatenation. The identity Given a continuous function f : pX, x0 q Ñ pY, y0 q between pointed spaces, we have an induced
element in π1 pX, x0 q is the class of the constant loop group morphism
def f˚ : π1 pX, x0 q Ñ π1 pY, y0 q
psq “ x0 for all s P r0, 1s
rγs ÞÑ rf ˝ γs.
while rγs´1 “ rγs, where γ denotes the loop
def One checks that f˚ is well defined by observing that a loop homotopy ht with base point x0 is
γpsq “ γp1 ´ sq for s P r0, 1s mapped by f to a loop homotopy f ˝ ht with base point y0 . Moreover, f˚ is a morphism because
obtained by traversing γ in the opposite direction. f ˝ pγ1 ˚ γ2 q “ pf ˝ γ1 q ˚ pf ˝ γ2 q. In addition, the operation f ÞÑ f˚ preserves composition of
continuous functions and identity:
Proof. It will be easier to show that the group axioms hold once we introduce the concept of • pg ˝ f q˚ “ pg˚ q ˝ pf˚ q for a composition
a reparametrization. A reparametrization of γ P ΩpX, x0 q is a composition γ ˝ ϕ, where
ϕ : r0, 1s Ñ r0, 1s is a continuous function such that ϕp0q “ 0 and ϕp1q “ 1. This reparametriza- f g
pX, x0 q ÝÑ pY, y0 q ÝÑ pZ, z0 q
tion15 does not alter the homotopy equivalence class of γ. In fact, if ϕt psq “ p1 ´ tqϕpsq ` ts,
)
the homotopy γ ˝ ϕt shows that γ ˝ ϕ „ γ. of continuous functions.
17
Now we can check: • pidpX,x0 q q˚ “ idπ1 pX,x0 q
20
(i) (Associativity) Let γ, δ, ζ P ΩpX, x0 q. The function ϕ : r0, 1s Ñ r0, 1s whose graph is This makes π1 into what we call a covariant functor from the category of pointed topological
spaces (whose morphisms are continuous functions preserving base points) to the category of
9,
groups. That is, not only does π1 associate a group to a pointed topological space, but it also
r2
==== associates a group morphism to every continuous function between pointed topological spaces,
ˇ “ ˇ “ˇ “ in such a way as to preserve compositions and identities.
be
Defining the fundamental group is one thing. Computing it in relevant examples is an entirely
different matter. We begin with humility:
m
==== Theorem 120. Let x0 P Rn be any point. Then π1 pRn , x0 q is trivial.
ve
ˇ“ˇ“ ˇ“
Proof. If γ is a loop in Rn with base point x0 P Rn then ht psq “ p1 ´ tqγpsq ` tx0 is a homotopy
No
` ˘
defines a reparametrization between γ˚pδ˚ζq and pγ˚δq˚ζ, so that γ˚pδ˚ζq “ pγ˚δq˚ζ ˝ϕ, ==== == between γ and the constant loop.
changing the “traversing rhythm” of the loops γ, δ, ζ (in that order) from ˇ “ ˇ “ ˇ “ to ˇ “ ˇ “ ==ˇ “. The attentive reader has noticed that the above proof shows that any convex subset of Rn has
M
(ii) (identity element) To show that γ ˚ „ γ and ˚ γ „ γ, it is enough to consider the trivial fundamental group (intuitively, convex regions have no “holes”). For instance, the (filled)
ST
following reparametrizations: disk in R2
def
D2 “ tpx, yq P R2 | x2 ` y 2 ď 1u
& also has trivial fundamental group.
Now let us show an example of a topological space whose fundamental group is not trivial. This
ˇ “( ? ? ˇ “(
T
is very important in order to convince ourselves that we are studying something that really exists
rather than just having a rather complicated definition of the trivial group!
(E
ˇ“ ˇ“
T
def
Theorem 121. Let S 1 “ tz P C | |z| “ 1u be the unit circle. Then π1 pS 1 , 1q – Z.
AF
(iii) (Inverse) To check that γ ˚ γ is homotopic to the constant path, it is enough to consider
the homotopy ht “ γt ˚ γ t , where γt is the path which coincides with γ in the interval
DR
r0, 1 ´ ts, and remains stationary in the interval r1 ´ t, 1s, while γ t is the reverse path of Intuitively, S 1 has a single hole, and π1 pS 1 , 1q – Z “counts” in how many ways we can go around
γt . By the same reasoning applied to γ instead of γ, we see that γ ˚ γ is also homotopic to it (n P Z means going around the circle n times clockwise if n ą 0 and counterclockwise if n ă 0).
the constant path. Before we jump to the proof, we need some topological results. The main character in this proof
will be the function
p : R Ñ S1
Definition 118. In the above notation, the group π1 pX, x0 q is called the fundamental group
of X (with base point x0 ). x ÞÑ e2πix
Remark 119. In general, we omit the base points of the topological spaces because they do not which has the following two important properties:
matter much: suppose x0 and x1 belong to the same path connected component of X, and let (i) p is surjective;
τ : r0, 1s Ñ X be a path from x1 to x0 . Then “conjugation by τ ” gives an isomorphism
(ii) For each z P S 1 , there is an open set Uz Ă S 1 such that p´1 pUz q is the disjoint union of
« open intervals of R (we dub them “pancake open sets”, as in a stack of pancakes), each
π1 pX, x0 q Ñ π1 pX, x1 q
of them homeomorphic to Uz via p. For example, we can choose each Uz as an arc of
rγs ÞÑ rτ ˚ γ ˚ τ s
angle 3π{2 centered at z, so that p´1 pUz q will be the union, indexed by Z, of copies (the
as the reader can check. “pancakes”) of an open segment of length 3{4.
The above properties make p into a special function that we call a covering map: the function Consider two open arcs U0 and U1 of S 1 such that U0 Y U1 “ S 1 and each p´1 pUi q is a disjoint
p winds the real line infinitely often around S 1 , covering each point a number of times naturally union of “pancake open sets” of R (given by open segments homeomorphic to Ui via p). For
equal to the cardinality of Z, as in the following picture: instance we may take
def def
U0 “ teiθ | ´π{6 ă θ ă 7π{6u U1 “ teiθ | π ă θ ă 2πu
Then f ´1 pU0 q Y f ´1 pU1 q “ X is an open cover of the compact set X. Take n " 0 large enough
so that 4{n is less than the Lebesgue number of this cover, and divide X “ r0, 1s into n segments
2 of length 1{n, and X “ r0, 1s ˆ r0, 1s into n2 square of sides 1{n, so that each of these (closed)
segments or squares has diameter less then 4{n and thus is completely contained in one of the
open sets f ´1 pUi q of the cover (by the definition of the Lebesgue number). In others words, the
1 image by f of each of these segments or squares is entirely contained in either U0 or U1 . Now,
R starting from 0 or p0, 0q, just lift f “segment by segment” or “square by square” in order. For
0 instance, if n “ 5 we can follow the order
)
17
21 22 23 24 25
20
16 17 18 19 20
11 12 13 14 15
9,
p 6 7 8 9 10
r2
1 2 3 4 5
1 2 3 4 5
be
S1 1“ e0 Let us look at the case X “ r0, 1s ˆ r0, 1s. Suppose that f p 1 q Ď Ui ; then there is a single
m
“open pancake” V Ă p´1 pUi q over Ui containing the specified value for f˜p0, 0q, so there is no
ve
choice but to define f˜ “ pp|V q´1 ˝ f on square 1. Next we repeat the procedure with square 2:
No
assuming f p 2 q Ď Uj , and letting W Ă p´1 pUj q be the unique “open pancake” over Uj con-
Given a continuous function f : X Ñ S 1 , a lifting of f is a continuous function f˜: X Ñ R such
that f “ p ˝ f˜: taining f˜p1{5, 0q, whose value has already been defined in the previous step since p1{5, 0q P 1 ,
there is no choice but to define f˜ “ pp|W q´1 ˝ f on square 2. Note that this is possible since the
M
R
f˜ shared side of squares 1 and 2 is contained in f ´1 pUi q X f ´1 pUj q, which entails V X W ‰ H,
ST
p
and therefore the definitions of f˜ on squares 1 and 2 agree on their common side. Proceeding in
X S1 this manner, we eventually end up lifting f on the whole X “ r0, 1s ˆ r0, 1s.
f
& Now let us go back to the proof of the theorem.
T
Lemma 122 (Lifting of paths and homotopies). In the above notation, if X “ r0, 1s
(E
or X “ r0, 1s ˆ r0, 1s then for any continuous function f : X Ñ S 1 there exists a lifting Proof. (of Theorem 121) Let
f˜: X Ñ R. Such liftings are unique once we specify f˜p0q and f˜p0, 0q. ωn : r0, 1s Ñ S 1
T
s ÞÑ e2πins
AF
For example, if f : r0, 1s Ñ S 1 is the path on the left in the picture below (a half loop followed
be the loop that goes around S 1 n times, and define
by a “drunk ant”), the lifting f˜: r0, 1s Ñ R such that f˜p0q “ 0 is the path in R represented on
DR
the right, starting at 0 and ending at 1{2 (after “stumbling” a bit): Ψ : Z Ñ π1 pS 1 , 1q

n ÞÑ rωn s
Of course, we are now going to show that Ψ is an isomorphism. First, note that Ψpnq can also
be defined as the homotopy class of the loop p ˝ ω̃n , where ω̃n is the unique lifting of ωn such
that ω̃n p0q “ 0. It is fairly easy to find out who this lifting is: ω̃n psq “ ns. In particular, the
end point of ω̃n is ω̃n p1q “ n.
0 1{2 But any two paths in R that have the same initial and final points are homotopic (you know, R
is convex and we have already seen this reasoning before. . . ). Therefore Ψpnq is the homotopy
class of any loop p ˝ f˜ where f˜ is a path in R that starts at 0 and ends at n. Thus, if τm : R Ñ R
denotes the translation τm pxq “ x ` m, then ω̃m ˚ pτm ˝ ω̃n q is a path from 0 to m ` n in R
Proof. Proving the lemma in full detail is a good exercise in Topology for the reader; we will projecting via p onto ωm ˚ ωn , hence
just sketch it. The key idea is to use property (ii) of p to show that f can be locally lifted ` ˘
Ψpm ` nq “ rp ˝ ω̃m ˚ pτm ˝ ω̃n q s “ rωm ˚ ωn s “ Ψpmq ¨ Ψpnq,
(since locally p is a homeomorphism and therefore has a continuous inverse), and then use the
compactness of r0, 1s and r0, 1s ˆ r0, 1s to “glue” these local liftings into one global lifting. that is, Ψ is a morphism.
It remains to show the injectivity and surjectivity of Ψ. Surjectivity is immediate: given a loop ω
in S 1 with base point 1 P S 1 , the lifting ω̃ of ω with ω̃p0q “ 0 has endpoint ω̃p1q “ n P p´1 p1q “ Z,
therefore Ψpnq “ rωs.
Finally, if Ψpmq “ Ψpnq then ωm „ ωn . Let h : r0, 1s ˆ r0, 1s Ñ S 1 be a homotopy between rpP q
ωm psq “ hps, 0q and ωn “ hps, 1q. This homotopy has a unique lifting h̃ : r0, 1s ˆ r0, 1s Ñ R such P
that h̃p0, 0q “ 0. The injectivity of Ψ will follow by looking at the restriction of h̃ to the sides of
the square r0, 1s ˆ r0, 1s. By the uniqueness of the liftings, f pP q
• the paths on R
def ˜ def
c̃ptq “ h̃p0, tq “ 0 dptq “ h̃p1, tq
are constant since they lift the constant paths t ÞÑ hp0, tq “ 1 and t ÞÑ hp1, tq “ 1 in S 1 .
• the paths on R
ω̃m psq “ h̃ps, 0q ω̃n psq “ h̃ps, 1q
)
are the liftings of ωm psq “ hps, 0q and ωn “ hps, 1q with ω̃m p0q “ h̃p0, 0q “ 0 and
17
Such r is continuous and restricts to the identity function on S 1 (we call r a retraction). This
ω̃n p0q “ h̃p0, 1q “ c̃p1q “ c̃p0q “ h̃p0, 0q “ 0.
is a contradiction, as we shall see in the following theorem.
20
˜ is constant, we get
Hence, since the path dptq
˜ “ dp1q
m “ ω̃m p1q “ h̃p1, 0q “ dp0q ˜ “ h̃p1, 1q “ ω̃n p1q “ n
9,
Theorem 125. There are no retractions r : D2 Ñ S 1 .
and Ψ is injective.
r2
Remark 123. Here are a few more examples of fundamental groups: Proof. Suppose that such retraction r exists. Then the composition of inclusion map S 1 ãÑ D2
be
with r is the identity map on S 1 :
space fundamental group
m
inclusion r
punctured plane Cˆ “ C r t0u
def
π1 pCˆ q “ π1 pS 1 q – Z S1 D2 S1
ve
n-punctured plane R2 r tp1 , . . . , pn u π1 pR2 r tp1 , . . . , pn uq – Fn
No
id
def
sphere S2 “ tpx, y, zq P R3 | x2 ` y2 ` z2 “ 1u π1 pS 2 q “ 1
Applying the functor π1 (which, as any good functor, preserves composition and identity), we
torus S 1 ˆ S 1 π1 pS 1 ˆS 1 q “ π1 pS 1 qˆπ1 pS 1 q – ZˆZ
M
get a composition of group morphisms
real projective plane P2R (see example 210) π1 pP2R q – Z{2Z
ST
π1 pS 1 q π1 pD2 q π1 pS 1 q
R2
Here p1 , . . . , pn P are n distinct points, and Fn is the free group on n generators.
& id
For instance, for the first entry, if i : S 1 ãÑ Cˆ denotes the inclusion map, and j : Cˆ S 1 is
the given by jpzq “ z{|z|, it is easy to check that the induced maps
But π1 pD2 q “ 0 (convex subset of R2 ) and π1 pS 1 q – Z, hence we get the following composition
T
« «
i˚ : π1 pS 1 q Ñ π1 pCˆ q j˚ : π1 pCˆ q Ñ π1 pS 1 q of group morphisms going through 0 which is the identity map on Z, a contradiction.
(E
are inverses of each other, hence we get an isomorphism π1 pCˆ q “ πpS 1 q.

Z 0 Z
On the other hand, some entries of the table require more advanced tools such as the van Kampen
T
theorem. See [8] or [12] for more details. id

AF
Brouwer’s fixed point theorem

DR
As an application of πpS 1 , 1q – Z, we will now prove Brouwer’s fixed point theorem. Note
that the following proof would not work if we only knew how to associate a group π1 pXq to a The fundamental theorem of Algebra
topological space X, we need the fact that π1 is a functor.
Another awesome application of the fundamental group of S 1 : the fundamental theorem of Al-
Theorem 124 (Brouwer). Let gebra! Looking carefully at the following proof, its key ideas are quite simple: given a complex
def
D2 “ tpx, yq P R2 | x2 ` y 2 ď 1u polynomial ppzq of degree n, ppzq is approximately equal to z n when |z| “ R for large R " 0. Now
suppose that ppzq has no roots, so that it defines a continuous function p : C Ñ Cˆ “ C r t0u,
be the closed unit disc. Every continuous function f : D2 Ñ D2 has at least one fixed point, i.e., and thus a group morphism p˚ : π1 pCq Ñ π1 pCˆ q. Since π1 pCq “ 0, the loop γpsq “ Re2πis is
there is P P D2 such that f pP q “ P . homotopic to a constant loop, hence p˚ rγs “ 0, i.e., ppRe2πis q is homotopic to a constant loop
Proof. We omit base points from the notation (you may choose it to be 1 P S 1 Ă D2 throughout, in Cˆ . But ppRe2πis q is homotopic to pRe2πis qn for R " 0. Since the latter loop wraps n times
for instance). Suppose that the continuous function f : D2 Ñ D2 does not have fixed points. around 0, its class in π1 pCˆ q “ π1 pS 1 q – Z can only be trivial if n “ 0, and ppzq is constant.
In that case, we can construct a continuous function r : D2 Ñ S 1 as follows: construct a ray
starting at f pP q and going through P . This ray intersects S 1 at one point, which by definition Theorem 126 (Fundamental Theorem of Algebra). Every non-constant polynomial ppzq P
is rpP q. Crzs with complex coefficients has a root in C.
Proof. We may assume ppzq to be monic: ppzq “ z n ` an´1 z n´1 ` ¨ ¨ ¨ ` a0 . Suppose that ppzq A
has no roots. Let R " 0 be a large real number, to be chosen later. Since ppzq never vanishes,
for each t P r0, 1s, we may define a loop ft : r0, 1s Ñ S 1 with base point 1 by
pptRe2πis q{pptRq α{3
ft psq “ α{3 α{3
|pptRe2πis q{pptRq|
We get a homotopy between the constant loop f0 and the loop fR , hence rfR s “ 0 in π1 pS 1 q. P //
R
Now choose R so that R ą 1 and R ą |an´1 | ` ¨ ¨ ¨ ` |a0 |. Then for |z| “ R
//
//
|z n | ą |an´1 | ` ¨ ¨ ¨ ` |a0 | |z n´1 | ě |an´1 z n´1 ` ¨ ¨ ¨ ` a0 |,
` ˘
γ{3
β{3 Q γ{3
def
which implies that the polynomial pt pzq “ z n ` tpan´1 z n´1 ` ¨ ¨ ¨ ` a0 q has no complex root β{3
β{3 γ{3
when |z| “ R for 0 ď t ď 1. Therefore, for each 0 ď t ď 1, we may define a loop gt : r0, 1s Ñ S 1 B C
)
with base point 1 by
17
pt pRe2πis q{pt pRq In [4], the Fields medalist Alain Connes gave a beautiful proof of Morley’s theorem, using the
gt psq “
20
|pt pRe2πis q{pt pRq| affine group
Aff 1 pCq “ tg : C Ñ C | gpzq “ az ` b, a P Cˆ , b P Cu
and we get a homotopy between the loops g1 psq “ fR psq and g0 psq “ ωn psq “ e2πns . When we
9,
computed the fundamental group of S 1 , we saw that rωn s represents n times a generator of the Note the surjective group morphism δ : Aff 1 pCq GL1 pCq “ Cˆ maps gpzq “ az ` b to a; ker δ
consists of the translations z ÞÑ z ` b. Note also that translations different from the identity
r2
infinite cyclic group π1 pS 1 q. But rωn s “ rfR s “ 0, hence n “ 0, and the polynomial ppzq must
be constant. have no fixed points; on the other hand, if δpgq ‰ 1 then gpzq “ az ` b has exactly one fixed
point, namely b{p1 ´ aq.
be
Now we present the proof by Connes. Let
Other examples
m
• α, β, γ be the measures of angles Â,B̂, Ĉ, respectively;
ve
Example 127 (Affine group). Let k be a field, and let n P N. The affine group Aff n pkq is • g1 , g2 , g3 be the counterclockwise rotations about vertices A, B, C and angles 2α{3, 2β{3,
the subgroup of the symmetric group Skn of kn generated by translations and invertible linear 2γ{3, respectively.
No
transformations of kn . More specifically, each element of Aff n pkq is given by a pair pu, Aq with Working in the complex plane C, each gj can be thought of as an element of the group Aff 1 pCq.
u P kn and A P GLn pkq, representing the composition pu, Aq : kn Ñ kn of the linear transfor- For instance, identifying vertex A with a complex number (still denoted by the same symbol
mation given in the standard basis by A, followed by a translation by u:
M
A P C), g1 P Aff 1 pCq can be written as
g1 pzq “ pz ´ Aq ¨ e2αi{3 ` A
ST
def
pu, Aqpwq “ Apwq ` u pw P kn q
The starting point of Connes’ proof is the following observation: P , Q, R are exactly the fixed
Since the operation on Aff n pkq is the composition of functions, given pu, Aq and pv, Bq in Aff n pkq,
& points of g1 g2 , g2 g3 , g3 g1 . For example, to see that Q is the fixed point of g2 g3 , consider the
we have
picture:
pu, Aq ¨ pv, Bq “ pu ` Av, ABq
T
Thus the affine group can also be represented as the subgroup of GLn`1 pkq consisting of matrices Q “ g2 g3 pQq
(E
of the form ˆ ˙
A u
pA P GLn pkq, u P kn q
T
0 1
g2 g3
AF
Here u is regarded as an n ˆ 1 column vector, and 0 denotes the 1 ˆ n zero row vector. The above B C
matrix corresponds to the pair pu, Aq: in fact, representing an element w P kn as an pn ` 1q ˆ 1
column vector with last coordinate 1, we retrieve the original action of Aff n pkq on kn using the
DR
matrix product: ˆ ˙ ˆ ˙ ˆ ˙
A u w A¨wù g3 pQq
¨ “ pw P kn q
0 1 1 1
Finally, note that the affine group comes equipped with a surjective group morphism Note that g3 maps Q to its symmetric with respect to side BC, while g2 maps g3 pQq back to Q,
hence Q is a fixed point of g2 g3 . Since δpg2 g3 q “ δpg2 qδpg3 q “ e2pβ`γqi{3 ‰ 1, g2 g3 is not a
δ : Aff n pkq GLn pkq translation, hence Q is its unique fixed point.
pu, Aq ÞÑ A Connes noticed that Morley’s theorem reduces to the following general property of the affine
group Aff 1 pCq: let g1 , g2 , g3 P Aff 1 pCq be arbitrary elements such that
whose kernel is the group of translations (isomorphic to the additive group kn ).
def
δpg1 g2 q ‰ 1, δpg2 g3 q ‰ 1, δpg3 g1 q ‰ 1, ω “ δpg1 g2 g3 q ‰ 1
As an application of the affine group, we have
and let P , Q, R be the fixed points of g1 g2 , g2 g3 , g3 g1 respectively. Then the following are
Example 128 (Connes’ proof of Morley’s theorem). Let 4ABC be any triangle, and let equivalent:
P , Q, R be the intersection points of the trisectors of angles Â, B̂, Ĉ, as shown in the picture. (i) g13 g23 g33 “ id
Morley’s theorem states that 4P QR is equilateral. (ii) ω 3 “ 1 and P ` ωQ ` ω 2 R “ 0
To see that this implies Morley’s theorem, take gj as the rotations above; note that in fact none O
of g1 g2 , g2 g3 , g3 g1 are translations, and the same is true for g1 g2 g3 because ω “ δpg1 g2 g3 q “
e2pα`β`γqi{3 “ e2πi{3 ‰ 1. In addition, condition (i) is satisfied, since g13 , g23 , g33 are the rota-
tions with centers A, B, C and angles 2α, 2β, 2γ, and as above it is easy to check that vertices
A, C are fixed points of g13 g23 g33 , therefore the latter element is the identity, since any other
element of Aff 1 pCq has at most one fixed point. Thus, by the above equivalence, (ii) holds. From
ω 3 “ 1 and ω “ e2πi{3 ‰ 1, we get ω 2 ` ω ` 1 “ 0, and condition
P ` ωQ ` ω 2 R “ 0 ðñ P ´ R “ ´ω ¨ pQ ´ Rq
ðñ P ´ R “ e´π{3 ¨ pQ ´ Rq Given P, Q P E, we want to define P ˚ Q as the third intersection point of E and the line going
through P and Q, as in following picture.
says that vector P ´ R is what you get from Q ´ R by a clockwise rotation of angle π{3. In other
words, 4P QR is equilateral.
)
It remains to show equivalence piq ðñ piiq, which follows by brute force computation. Write
17
gj pzq “ aj z ` bj (aj P Cˆ , bj P C). Since gj3 pzq “ a3j ¨ z ` pa2j ` aj ` 1q ¨ bj we get
20
g13 g23 g33 pzq “ a31 a32 a33 ¨ z ` a31 a32 pa23 ` a3 ` 1qb3 ` a31 pa22 ` a2 ` 1qb2 ` pa21 ` a1 ` 1qb1 Q
P P ˚Q
9,
Thus (i) is equivalent to a31 a32 a33 “ 1 ðñ ω 3 “ 1 and
r2
a31 a32 pa23 ` a3 ` 1qb3 ` a31 pa22 ` a2 ` 1qb2 ` pa21 ` a1 ` 1qb1 “ 0 p˚q
be
On the other hand, g1 g2 pzq “ a1 a2 ¨ z ` a1 b2 ` b1 . The fixed point of this affine transformation
m
is thus
a1 b2 ` b1 a1 b2 ` b1 a3 pa1 b2 ` b1 q
P “ ,
ve
“ “
1 ´ a1 a2 1 ´ ω{a3 a3 ´ ω
No
Similarly the fixed points of g2 g3 and g3 g1 are
a1 pa2 b3 ` b2 q a2 pa3 b1 ` b3 q The main point here is that, in general, if a line y “ mx`c intersects the curve y 2 “ x3 ´x`1{4
Q“ R“
M
a1 ´ ω a2 ´ ω in 2 points then it must intersect this curve in 3 points. In fact, solving the corresponding system
# #
y 2 “ x3 ´ x ` 14 x3 ´ m2 x2 ´ p2mc ` 1qx ´ c2 ` 41 “ 0
ST
Collecting the terms bj , and using the relation ω 3 “ 1, the second condition in (ii) is equivalent ðñ
to y “ mx ` c y “ mx ` c
a3 pa1 b2 ` b1 q a1 pa2 b3 ` b2 q a2 pa3 b1 ` b3 q
`ω¨ ` ω2 ¨ “0 & we see that the number of intersection points is equal to the number of real roots of the cubic
a3 ´ ω a1 ´ ω a2 ´ ω equation x3 ´ m2 x2 ´ p2mc ` 1qx ´ c2 ` 1{4 “ 0. But since there are at least 2 real roots (the
abscissas of P and Q), the third root is also real as the sum of the roots is m2 .
T
ωa3 p´1 ` ωa2 a3 q a1 p´ω 2 ` a1 a3 q a2 pωa1 a2 ´ 1q
ðñ ¨ b1 ` ¨ b2 ` ¨ b3 “ 0 Thus, if P “ pxP , yP q and Q “ pxQ , yQ q, to find a formula for P ˚ Q “ pxP ˚Q , yP ˚Q q, just
(E
pa2 ´ ωqpa3 ´ ωq pa1 ´ ωqpa3 ´ ωq pa1 ´ ωqpa2 ´ ωq

note that the slope and the equation of the line going through P and Q are respectively equal to
ðñ ωa3 p´1 ` ωa2 a3 qpa1 ´ ωq ¨ b1 ` a1 p´ω 2 ` a1 a3 qpa2 ´ ωq ¨ b2 ` a2 pωa1 a2 ´ 1qpa3 ´ ωq ¨ b3 “ 0 yP ´ yQ
T
b1 b2 b3 m“ and y ´ yP “ m ¨ px ´ xP q
ðñ ´ωa3 pa1 ´ ω 2 qpa1 ´ ωq ¨ ´ ω 2 a1 pa2 ´ ω 2 qpa2 ´ ωq ¨ ´ a2 pa3 ´ ω 2 qpa3 ´ ωq ¨ “0 xP ´ xQ
AF
a1 a2 a3
As m2 “ xP ` xQ ` xP ˚Q we get
Multiplying the last equation by ´ω 2 a1 {a3 , and using the relation paj ´ ωqpaj ´ ω 2 q “ a2j ` aj ` 1
xP ˚Q “ ´xP ´ xQ ´ m2
DR
(recall that ω 2 ` ω ` 1 “ 0), we finally get that the second condition in (ii) is equivalent to p˚q,
finishing the proof. yP ˚Q “ yP ` m ¨ pxP ˚Q ´ xP q
We are almost done with the definition of ˚, but there are still a few “exceptional cases” to be
Example 129 (Elliptic curve). Consider the real plane curve with equation y 2 “ x3 ´ x ` 1{4, considered. First, if P “ Q is a point of the curve y 2 “ x3 ´ x ` 1{4, we must interpret the
an instance of the so-called elliptic curves16 . We shall define a binary operation ˚ on the set line going through P and Q as the tangent line to this curve at P “ Q. In that case, since
dy
y 2 “ x3 ´ x ` 41 ùñ 2y ¨ dx “ 3x2 ´ 1, we must use the slope
! ˇ 1)
E “ px, yq P R2 ˇ y 2 “ x3 ´ x `
ˇ
Y tOu
4 3x2P ´ 1
m“
Here O is just a symbol, which we secretly think of as the “point at infinity” where all vertical 2yP
lines meet, and which we add to the plane R2 with the sole purpose of drawing the following in the formulas above. On the other hand, if P and Q are points in the curve y 2 “ x3 ´ x ` 1{4
picture17 : with the same abscissa xP “ xQ , the line through them is vertical, and only intersects the curve
16 despitewidespread belief, ellipses are not elliptic curves
17 Later,we will see that E naturally lives in the projective plane (see example 210): E “ tpx : y : zq P P2R | y 2 z “ x3 ´ xz 2 ` z 3 {4u. Then O “ p0 : 1 : 0q will be the single intersection point of E
with the “line at infinity” z “ 0.
in these 2 points (the above argument fails because the equation of the line can not be written as 1
y “ mx ` c), and the slope m is infinite. But then we can conveniently define P ˚ Q “ O! By
the same token, if P belongs to the curve and Q “ O, we define P ˚ O as the symmetric of P 3
with respect to the x-axis (which is the third intersection point of the vertical line going through 4
O and P ). Lastly, we also define O ˚ O “ O (i.e., O is an “inflection point” of the extended
curve E). 1
We are done! Now the reader can have fun checking whether or not the authors miscomputed 2
something in the following table:
P Q P ˚Q
p0, 1{2q p0, 1{2q p1, ´1{2q
p1, ´1{2q p1, 1{2q O 0
0 1 1 1
)
p0, 1{2q p2, ´5{2q p1{4, 1{8q 4 2
17
p0, 1{2q p6, 29{2q p´5{9, ´43{54q
20
Clearly the operation ˚ is commutative (since the line going through P and Q is the same as the An important fact about the group F is that it is torsion-free, that is, all elements other than the
one through Q and P ), but ˚ is not associative. This can be fixed if we define a second binary identity have infinite order. In fact, let ϕ P F , ϕ ‰ idr0,1s ; let x0 P r0, 1q be the largest number
9,
operation ` on E: such that ϕpxq “ x for x ď x0 . For numbers that are slightly bigger than x0 , the derivative of ϕ
r2
def is of the form 2k for some k ‰ 0:
P ` Q “ pP ˚ Qq ˚ O pP, Q P Eq
be
That is, P ` Q is the symmetric of P ˚ Q with respect to the x-axis.
m
ve
No
x0
M
Q
P P ˚Q
ST
x0
P `Q &
But then for all nonzero n P Z the derivative of ϕn will be 2nk ‰ 1 for values of x slightly bigger
T
than x0 , hence ϕn ‰ id and therefore ϕ has infinite order.
(E
Let ϕ0 and ϕ1 be nontrivial elements of F with the property:

T
(a) ϕ0 pxq “ x if x P r1{2, 1s;

AF
This new operation is called the chord-tangent law due to the above geometric description. It (b) ϕ1 pxq “ x if x P r0, 1{2s.
is quite a nontrivial fact that the chord-tangent law makes E into an abelian group: it is easy to
DR
see that the chord-tangent law is still commutative, that O is the identity element, and that the
opposite of P is P ˚ O (i.e., the symmetric of P with respect to the x-axis), but it is not easy
at all to show that the above operation is associative. The study of elliptic curves has played a ϕ1
central role in Number Theory in recent years. See [15] or [14] for an introduction to the vast
theory of elliptic curves.
Example 130 (Thompson F ). The Thompson group F is the subgroup of the symmetric group
ϕ0
Sr0,1s of the real interval r0, 1s consisting of homeomorphisms ϕ : r0, 1s Ñ r0, 1s satisfying
(i) ϕ is linear by parts;
(ii) ϕ is differentiable except possibly for a finite set of dyadic numbers (p{2k with p, k P N); The elements ϕ0 and ϕ1 commute, therefore they generate a subgroup of F isomorphic to Z2 .
(iii) in the intervals where ϕ is differentiable, the derivative is of the form 2n (n P Z). This idea can be generalized to show that F contains a subgroup isomorphic to Zk for all pos-
itive integers k. For instance, if k “ 4, it is enough to consider the subgroup generated by the
Here is the graph of a typical element of F : functions whose graphs are represented below:
Other examples are
Example 134. • An Ĳ Sn since An is the kernel of the parity morphism Π : Sn Ñ t˘1u

(see definition 77).
• SLn pRq Ĳ GLn pRq since SLn pRq is the kernel of the determinant morphism
det : GLn pRq Ñ Rˆ .
• The subgroup of rotations xρy in the dihedral group Dn is a normal subgroup. In fact,
rotations commute among themselves, hence κρi “ id in xρy, and conjugating a rotation
by a reflection results in a rotation, thanks to the relation σρσ “ ρ´1 .
• The subgroup P ď F2 of the free group F2 consisting of words of even length is normal
in F2 .
)
17
• (Klein’s Four Group) The subgroup of S4
20
def
V “ tp1q, p12qp34q, p13qp24q, p14qp23qu
Quotients
9,
is called Klein’s Four Group (here V stands for four18 , of course). Note that V consists
r2
of the identity p1q together with all permutations of S4 which are products of two disjoint
Let G be a group, and N ď G be a subgroup. Under certain conditions, we may define a product
2-cycles (i.e., V is a union of conjugacy classes, see example 192). From example 74,
in G{N (the set of left cosets of N ), thus obtaining a new group, the so-called quotient group.
conjugation by any element in S4 maps a product of two disjoint 2-cycles to a permutation
be
To build this new group, N has to be normal.
of the same form, therefore V Ĳ S4 .
m
Normal subgroups
ve
Example 135 (Unitriangular Group). Let k be a field, and consider the subgroup U Tn pkq ď
GLn pkq of all upper unitriangular matrices, i.e., upper triangular matrices with 1’s in the diag-
Definition 131. Let G a group. A subgroup N ď G is called normal (notation: N Ĳ G) if it
No
onal:
is stable under conjugation κg (see definition 13) by any element g P G, i.e., $¨ ˛ ,
’ 1 ˚ ˚ ¨¨¨ ˚ ˚ /
κg pN q “ gN g ´1 Ď N pg P Gq
’ /
’ ˚0 1 ˚ ¨ ¨ ¨ ˚ ˚‹ /
M
’
’ /
/
&˚ ‹ .
. . .
Note that if N Ĳ G the above inclusion is actually an equality: gN g ´1 “ N . In fact, since N is U Tn pkq “ ˚ .. . . .. ‹ P GLn pkq
˚ ‹
ST
also stable under conjugation by g ´1 , the opposite inclusion also holds:
’
’ ˚ ‹ /
/
’˝0 0 0 ¨ ¨ ¨ 1 ˚‚
’ /
/
’ /
g ´1 N g Ď N ðñ N Ď gN g ´1
% -
0 0 0 ¨¨¨ 0 1
Thus if N Ĳ G there is a well defined function
& Here ˚ denotes an arbitrary element of k. For each r P N, consider the subgroup of U Tn pkq
given by
T
ι : G Ñ AutpN q
def
U Ur “ tpaij q P U Tn pkq | aij “ 0 if j ´ r ă i ă ju
(E
g ÞÑ κg |N
mapping g P G to the restriction of conjugation by g to N . The function ι is a group morphism For instance, for n “ 4 we have U U1 “ U T4 pkq,
T
by the conjugate relation (2) of lemma 14. $¨ ˛, $¨ ˛,

1 0 ˚ ˚ / 1 0 0 ˚ /
AF
’
’ / ’
’ /
&˚
0 1 0 ˚‹
. &˚
0 1 0 0‹
.
Remark 132. To say that N is stable under conjugation κg does not mean that the restric- U U2 “ ˚˝0 0 1 0 ‚/
‹ , U U3 “ ˚
˝0
‹
’ ’ 0 1 0 ‚/
tion κg |N of κg to N is the identity, only that κg |N is an automorphism of N . Example 134
’ / ’ /
DR
0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1
% - % -
shows that, in general, κg |N ‰ id.
and U Ur is trivial for r ě 4.
For any group G, we obviously have teu Ĳ G and G Ĳ G. If G is abelian, then every subgroup
is automatically normal since in that case κg “ id for all g P G. The most important example of Denoting the identity matrix by In P GLn pkq, note that if A P U Tn pkq then A ´ In is a nilpotent
a normal subgroup is given by matrix. We can then describe the subgroups U Ur as follows:
Example 133 (Kernel is normal). Let ϕ : G Ñ H be a group morphism. Recall (see exam- U Ur “ tA P U Tn pkq | pA ´ In qn´r`1 “ 0n u
ple 62) that the kernel of ϕ is the subgroup of G given by
Here 0n denotes the n ˆ n zero matrix.
def
ker ϕ “ ϕ´1 peH q “ tg P G | ϕpgq “ eH u We claim that U Ur Ĳ U Tn pkq for all r P N. In fact, given A P U Tn pkq and B P U Ur we have
Since, for all g P G, ˘n´r`1
pABA´1 ´ In qn´r`1 “ ApB ´ In qA´1 “ ApB ´ In qn´r`1 A´1 “ A ¨ 0n ¨ A´1 “ 0n
`
x P ker ϕ ùñ ϕpgxg ´1 q “ ϕpgq ¨ e ¨ ϕpgq´1 “ e ùñ gxg ´1 P ker ϕ
we conclude that ker ϕ Ĳ G. hence ABA´1 P U Ur , as required.
18 Vier, auf Deutsch
Example 136 (Index 2 Subgroups). Let G be any group, and N ď G be a subgroup of in-
dex 2. Then N Ĳ G. In fact, let g P G r N ; we can decompose G as a disjoint union of both left Lemma 139. Let G be a group, and let N Ĳ G be a normal subgroup. Given
and right cosets of N : g1 , g2 , g11 , g21 P G, we have #
g11 P g1 N
p˚q
G “ N Y gN “ N Y N g pN X gN “ N X N g “ Hq ùñ g11 g21 P g1 g2 N
g21 P g2 N
From p˚q and the fact that these unions are disjoint, gN “ N g ðñ gN g ´1 “ N , that is, N is That is, the product of any class representative of g1 N with any class representative of g2 N
stable under conjugation by g. But then N is stable under conjugation by any x P G “ N Y gN , belongs to the class g1 g2 N . In particular,
since
#
g11 N “ g1 N
ùñ g11 g21 N “ g1 g2 N
• if x P N , clearly κx pN q “ N since N is a subgroup of G; g21 N “ g2 N
• if x “ gn with n P N then κgn pN q “ pgnq ¨ N ¨ pgnq´1 “ gpnN n´1 qg ´1 “ gN g ´1 “ which shows that the above defined product in G{N does not depend on the choice of coset
κg pN q “ N . representatives of N .
)
17
Example 137 (Center and Derived Subgroup). Let G be a group. Proof. We have that gi1 “ gi ni for some ni P N (i “ 1, 2). Thus, by the commutativity with fee,
g11 g21 “ g1 n1 g2 n2 “ g1 g2 n11 n2 for some n11 P N
20
• the center of G (see example 22) is always normal: ZpGq Ĳ G.
and therefore g11 g21 P g1 g2 N . Finally, by lemma 51, we get g11 g21 P g1 g2 N ðñ g11 g21 N “ g1 g2 N .
• the same holds for the derived subgroup of G (see example 29): if ϕ : G Ñ H is a group
9,
morphism then
r2
ϕpra, bsq “ rϕpaq, ϕpbqs pa, b P Gq It is easy to check that G{N is a group with the above defined product:
In particular, commutators are stable under conjugation (i.e., κg pra, bsq “ rκg paq, κg pbqs (i) associativity: follows from the associativity in G since, for any g1 , g2 , g3 P G,
be
for all g P G), so rG, Gs Ĳ G. pg1 N ¨ g2 N q ¨ g3 N “ g1 g2 N ¨ g3 N “ pg1 g2 qg3 N “ g1 pg2 g3 qN “ g1 N ¨ pg2 N ¨ g3 N q
m
Given a group G and a normal subgroup N Ĳ G, left cosets of N are also right cosets of N : (ii) identity element: N is the identity element of G{N ;
ve
(iii) inverse: the inverse of gN is g ´1 N (g P G).
gN “ pgN g ´1 q ¨ g “ N g pg P Gq
No
We say that G{N is the quotient of G mod N . This quotient group comes equipped from factory
We get a “commutativity with fee:” for n P N to commute with g P G, n must “pay a conjugation with a quotient morphism or projection map
fee:”
M
π : G G{N
g ¨ n “ pgng ´1 qg “ κg pnq ¨ g with κg pnq P N
g ÞÑ gN
ST
To illustrate the usefulness of this property, we will show
Clearly π is surjective. Given g P G, πpgq will often be denoted by one of the following:
Lemma 138. Let G be a group. Let N Ĳ G be a normal subgroup, and H ď G be any subgroup. & πpgq “ gN “ rgs “ g mod N “ g
Then the set With this notation, we can for example write the definition of the product in G{N as
T
def
H ¨ N “ thn | h P H, n P N u “ N ¨ H
g 1 ¨ g 2 “ g1 ¨ g2 pg1 , g2 P N q
(E
is a subgroup of G.
Intuitively, the construction of the quotient group corresponds to equating all elements in the
same coset gN among themselves, so that π “squashes” gN into a single “point” g P G{N (hence
T
Proof. Of course, H ¨ N ‰ H since e P H ¨ N . Now let us check that the name projection for π : G G{N ):
AF
• H ¨ N is closed under product: given h1 , h2 P H and n1 , n2 P N ,
ph1 n1 q ¨ ph2 n2 q “ ph1 h2 q ¨ pκh´1 pn1 q ¨ n2 q P H ¨ N

DR
2
gN N hN G
• H ¨ N is closed under inverse: given h P H and n P N ,
phnq´1 “ n´1 h´1 “ h´1 ¨ κh pn´1 q P H ¨ N
π
G{N
Quotient Group g e h
Let G be a group, and let N Ĳ G be a normal subgroup. The “commutativity with fee” allows Note that, as a set, G{N is just the quotient set of G by the equivalence relation defined by the
one to define, in the set of cosets G{N “ N zG, a binary operation induced by the product in G: partition of G into cosets of N (see remark 57).
def Remark 140. Given a surjective function f : X Y between two sets, we can visualize it as a
g1 N ¨ g2 N “ g1 g2 N
“projection” as above. Due to this mental picture, the pre-image f ´1 pyq of an element y P Y is
This operation is well defined, as shown in the following called fiber of y. For the quotient map π : G G{N , the fibers are just the cosets of N .
Example 141 (Integers mod 3 revisited). Consider the abelian group pZ, `q and its (nor- There are two translates of N in G, hence G{N has order 2:
mal) subgroup 3Z (multiples of 3). Intuitively, we already know that the quotient group Z{3Z is
the group of integers mod 3, obtained from Z by “setting all the multiples of 3 equal to 0”. G{N “ tN, N ` p1, 0qu “ tp0, 0q, p1, 0qu
Let us reconcile this intuitive notion with the formal construction above. There are 3 distinct Hence G{N is cyclic of order 2, and thus G{N – Z{2Z (as any order 2 group, see corollary 54).
cosets of 3Z, which form a partition of Z:
def Example 144. Consider the quotient of additive groups R{Z, obtained from R by “setting all
0 “ 3Z “ t. . . , ´9, ´6, ´3, 0, 3, 6, 9, . . .u integers equal to zero”: in R{Z, n “ 0 for all n P Z. Thus, a set of coset representatives of Z in
def R is the interval r0, 1q, that is, every real x P R is represented by its fractional part txu P r0, 1q.
1 “ 1 ` 3Z “ t. . . , ´8, ´5, ´2, 1, 4, 7, 10, . . .u
For example,
def
2 “ 2 ` 3Z “ t. . . , ´7, ´4, ´1, 2, 5, 8, 11, . . .u
17{3 “ 5 ` 2{3 “ 5 ` 2{3 “ 2{3
Hence the quotient group Z{3Z has exactly 3 elements: π “ 3 ` 0.1415 . . . “ 3 ` 0.1415 . . . “ 0.1415 . . .
Z{3Z “ t3Z, 1 ` 3Z, 2 ` 3Zu “ t0, 1, 2u
)
As 0 “ 1, we can picture R{Z as the group obtained from the interval r0, 1s by “gluing” its
17
By definition, to find the sum of two translates of 3Z, say 1`3Z and 2`3Z, we take the translate endpoints, so as to get a circle. Hence there is an isomorphism R{Z – S 1 (see example 19)
containing the sum of any two representatives of these two translates: note that, in fact, the since adding real numbers mod Z is the same as adding the corresponding angles up to multiples
20
sum of any blue number (for example ´5) and any green number (for example 2) is always red19 of 2π in the circle. The projection map
(´5 ` 2 “ ´3), therefore
9,
p : R R{Z – S 1
p1 ` 3Zq ` p2 ` 3Zq “ 3Z
r2
The fact that this sum does not depend on the choice of the “color representative” is what we x ÞÑ x ÞÑ e2πix
mean by the sum a ` b “ a ` b to be “well defined” (see lemma 139). can be visualized as the “cover” of the circle by the real line R, which maps x P R to the point
be
e2πix P S 1 of angle 2πx:
Example 142. Let V be the Klein’s four group as in example 134. Since all its permutations
m
are even, V ď A4 , and since V Ĳ S4 , we conclude that V Ĳ A4 as well. There are 3 distinct
ve
cosets of V in A4 :
No
V “ tp1q, p12qp34q, p13qp24q, p14qp23qu
p123q ¨ V “ tp123q, p134q, p243q, p142qu 2
M
p132q ¨ V “ tp132q, p234q, p124q, p143qu
1
ST
Therefore
A4 {V “ tV, p123qV, p132qV u “ tp1q, p123q, p132qu R
0
The multiplication table of A4 {V is given below: &
¨ V p123qV p132qV
T
V V p123qV p132qV
(E
p123qV p123qV p132qV V

p132qV p132qV V p123qV p
T
We see that A4 {V “ xp123qy is cyclic of order 3, hence A4 {V – Z{3Z (as any order 3 group by
AF
corollary 54).
S1 1 “ e0
DR
Example 143. Consider the additive abelian group G “ ZˆZ and its (normal) subgroup N Ĳ G
consisting of all points pa, bq P G with a ` b even.
In the above picture, the fiber of 1 “ e0 P S 1 is the kernel of the projection p, i.e., it is exactly
Z.
The following examples illustrate how to use quotient groups to solve problems about groups.
Example 145. Let G be a group, and N Ĳ G be a normal subgroup of finite index m “ rG : N s.

If g P G is an element of order n with gcdpm, nq “ 1, show that g P N .
Solution Since g n “ e, we have g n “ e in G{N . By Lagrange (corollary 53), in the finite group
G{N of order m we also have g m “ e. But since gcdpm, nq “ 1, as in example 9 we have g “ e,
i.e., g P N .
19 blue + green = red, just as you learned at school. . .
The next example shows that, in general, the converse of Lagrange’s theorem is false: given a • given H ď G such that H ě N , then π ´1 πH “ H. The inclusion Ě is clear; to show Ď,
finite group G and any divisor d of |G|, there may not be a subgroup of G of order d. let g P π ´1 πH; then there exists h P H such that πpgq “ πphq ðñ gN “ hN . Since
N ď H we get gN “ hN ď H, and thus g P H.
Example 146 (Converse of Lagrange is false). The alternating group A4 , of order 4!{2 “ 12,
Of course, the above bijection preserves inclusion. On the other hand, given a pair of corre-
does not have subgroups of order 6. In fact, for the sake of contradiction suppose that N ď A4
sponding subgroups H “ πpHq ď G{N and H “ π ´1 pHq ď G, the above bijection also induces
with |N | “ 6. Since rA4 : N s “ 2, by example 136 N Ĳ A4 . On the other hand, by example 145
a bijection between the conjugates of these subgroups: conjugates of H in G are mapped by π
above, N contains all odd order elements of A4 . But this is a contradiction, since there are 8
to conjugates of H in G{N since
elements of odd order in A4 (the 3-cycles) and 8 ą |N | “ 6.
πpgHg ´1 q “ πpgq ¨ H ¨ πpgq´1 pg P Gq
Later, we will see that Sylow’s theorems (theorem 226) give a “partial converse” of Lagrange’s
theorem. and, conversely, given a conjugate of H in G{N
Example 147. Let n ě 2. Then An is the unique index 2 subgroup of Sn . In fact, given g ¨ H ¨ g ´1 “ πpgHg ´1 q pg P Gq,
)
N ď Sn with rSn : N s “ 2, we have N Ĳ Sn by example 136, hence by example 145 N contains
17
all odd order elements of Sn , in particular all 3-cycles. This implies N “ An since the 3-cycles we see that gHg ´1
ď G is the corresponding subgroup since H ě N ùñ gHg ´1 ě gN g ´1 “ N .
generate An (example 84). Thus H Ĳ G{N if and only if H has a single conjugate in G{N , which happens if and only if H
20
has a single conjugate in G, i.e., H Ĳ G.
Since every subgroup of an abelian group is automatically normal, we can make the following
9,
Remark 151. In the above notation, if G is a finite group then the subgroup H ď G corre-
r2
Definition 148. Let φ : A Ñ B be a morphism of abelian groups. The cokernel of φ (notation: sponding to the subgroup H ď G{N has order
cokerφ) is the quotient
be
def B |H| “ |H| ¨ |N |
cokerφ “
im φ
m
This follows directly from Lagrange’s theorem (theorem 52): H is the disjoint union of |H| cosets
of N , and each coset has |N | elements. In other words, in the bijection of the correspondence
ve
Just as the kernel of φ measures the lack of injectivity of φ (lemma 63), the cokernel of φ measures
the lack of surjectivity of φ, but now the proof immediately follows from the definition: theorem, the operation H ÞÑ H “ πpHq “shrinks |N | times”, while H ÞÑ H “ π ´1 pHq “magnifies
No
|N | times”.
Lemma 149 (Cokernel and surjectivity). Let φ : A Ñ B be a morphism of abelian groups.
Then φ is surjective if and only if cokerφ “ 0 (trivial group). Example 152 (Subgroups of Z{nZ). We have the following pairing of subgroups:
M
ST
subgroup of Z{6Z subgroup of Z containing 6Z
Correspondence Theorem
t0u 6Z
Given a group morphism φ : G Ñ H and a subgroup I ď H, we have already seen (example 62) &
that the pre-image φ´1 pIq of I is a subgroup of G. Thus, given a subgroup I of the quotient t0, 3u 3Z
G{N , the pre-image π ´1 pIq under the projection map π : G G{N is a subgroup of G, which
T
t0, 2, 4u 2Z
necessarily contains N . The next important theorem is a consequence of this simple observation,
(E
Z{6Z Z
allowing us to determine all subgroups of the quotient G{N in terms of subgroups of G.
T
In general, since we know that every subgroup of Z is of the form dZ (example 23), there is a
bijection between subgroups of Z{nZ with subgroups dZ ď Z containing nZ, that is, subgroups
AF
Theorem 150 (Correspondence Theorem). Let G be a group, and N Ĳ G be a

normal subgroup. Let π : G G{N be the projection map. Then π induces a bijection dZ ď Z satisfying d | n. Thus there are bijections
between subgroups of the quotient group G{N and subgroups of G containing N :
DR
tH ď Z{nZu Ø tH “ dZ ď Z | d | nu Ø td P N | d | nu
tH ď G{N u ÐÑ tH ď G such that N ď H ď Gu
Since every finite cyclic group is isomorphic to some Z{nZ, we have just obtained another proof
H ÞÝÑ π ´1 pHq of theorem 40 using the correspondence theorem.
πpHq ÐÝß H
Example 153. Consider the projection of example 144:
This bijection preserves inclusion and normal subgroups: given subgroups H i ď G{N
and corresponding subgroups Hi “ π ´1 pH i q ď G containing N , we have p : R R{Z – S 1
H 1 ď H 2 ðñ H1 ď H2 x ÞÑ x ÞÑ e2πix
H 1 Ĳ G{N ðñ H1 Ĳ G Then the cyclic subgroup t˘1, ˘iu ď S 1 corresponds to the subgroup t0, 1{4, 2{4, 3{4u of R{Z,
which in turn corresponds to the subgroup tn{4 P R | n P Zu of R.
Proof. We have to show: Finally, we note a fact that should have become obvious by now: the Correspondence Theorem
• ππ ´1 H “ H for all H ď G{N , which directly follows from the fact that π is surjective. has nothing to do with sending letters.
Isomorphism Theorem Theorem 155 (Isomorphism Theorem). Let φ : G Ñ H be a group morphism. Then
The following important theorem says that it is easy to build morphisms from the quotient group. φ induces an isomorphism
You may think of this theorem as a way to guarantee that the morphism φ : G{N Ñ H, con-
G «
structed below from φ : G Ñ H, is well-defined: just check that “e ÞÑ e”, that is, that φ “kills” φ: Ñ im φ
N. ker φ
g ÞÑ φpgq
Theorem 154 (Universal property of the quotient). Let G and H be two groups, and thus there is a commutative diagram
and let N Ĳ G be a normal subgroup of G. Let π : G G{N be the corresponding pro-
jection map. Then giving a morphism φ : G{N Ñ H is equivalent to giving a morphism φ
G im φ
φ : G Ñ H that “kills” N , i.e., such that φpN q “ e. More precisely, composition with
«
the projection map π gives a bijection
φ
G
)
Ξ : HompG{N, Hq ãÑ
Ñ tφ P HompG, Hq | φpN q “ eu
17
ker φ
φ ÞÑ φ ˝ π
20
In other words, given φ : G Ñ H that “kills” N , there is a unique morphism
Proof. Of course, φ “kills” its own kernel, and thus the above morphism φ is well defined by the
9,
φ : G{N Ñ H universal property. Obviously im φ “ im φ, and therefore φ is surjective. To show injectivity, it
r2
gN ÞÑ φpgq is enough to notice that
that makes the following diagram commute:
be
ker φ “ tg ¨ ker φ P G{ ker φ | φpg ¨ ker φq “ eu
m
φ “ tg ¨ ker φ P G{ ker φ | φpgq “ eu “ tker φu
G H
ve
«
π
D!φ is the trivial subgroup of G{ ker φ, hence φ is injective (see lemma 63).
No
G{N
M
Proof. As π “kills” N , it is clear that φ ˝ πpN q “ e for any φ P HompG{N, Hq, so that the As an immediate consequence, we get the
ST
above map Ξ is well defined. Conversely, given φ P HompG, Hq that “kills” N , we can define a
morphism φ : G{N Ñ H via
def
Corollary 156 (Kernel-image theorem). Let ϕ : G Ñ H be a morphism between finite
φpgq “ φpgq pg P Gq & groups. Then
We need to check that this definition does not depend on the class g of g, which is easy: if g 1 “ g
T
then g 1 “ gn for some n P N (lemma 51), hence φpg 1 q “ φpgqφpnq “ φpgq since φpnq “ e by
(E
hypothesis. Thus there is a map in the opposite direction

|G| “ | ker ϕ| ¨ | im ϕ|
Γ : tφ P HompG, Hq | φpN q “ eu Ñ HompG{N, Hq
T
φ ÞÑ φ
AF
Example 157. Consider the following surjective morphism of additive abelian groups
We will show that Γ is the inverse of Ξ.
π : Z{5Z ˆ Z{5Z Z{5Z
DR
• Ξ ˝ Γ “ id: given φ P HompG, Hq such that φpN q “ e, let Γpφq “ φ : G{N Ñ H as defined
above. Then, for any g P G, pa, bq ÞÑ a ´ b
` ˘
Ξ ˝ Γpφq pgq “ Ξpφqpgq “ φ ˝ πpgq “ φpgq “ φpgq
represented graphically below. The kernel of π is given by the elements on the “diagonal”:
and therefore Ξ ˝ Γpφq “ φ.
• Γ ˝ Ξ “ id: given φ P HompG{N, Hq, for any g P G, ker π “ tpa, aq P Z{5Z ˆ Z{5Z | a P Z{5Zu
` ˘
Γ ˝ Ξpφq pgq “ Γpφ ˝ πqpgq “ φ ˝ πpgq “ φpgq
Note that π induces a bijection between cosets of the kernel and elements of the image: the cosets
Hence Γ ˝ Ξpφq “ φ. are precisely the fibers of π (remark 140). Each fiber has the same cardinality | ker π|, and there
are as many fibers as elements in the image. Since the fibers of π partition Z{5Z ˆ Z{5Z, we
visibly get an “empirical check” of the kernel-image theorem:
The universal property of the quotient is generally used as in the next theorem. In essence, that
theorem says that, given a group morphism φ : G Ñ H, it suffices to cut out G by the “redun- |Z{5Z ˆ Z{5Z| “ 25 “ 5 ¨ 5 “ |loomoon
ker π| ¨ |loomoon
im π|
dancies” of ker φ (the various elements of G mapping to the same identity element of H) in order
loooooooomoooooooon
size of size of number
to get an injective morphism φ : G{ ker φ ãÑ H. domain each fiber of fibers
4 is a surjective morphism from the additive group C onto the multiplicative group Cˆ . Its kernel
is ker ϕ “ Z ¨ p2πiq “ t2kπi | k P Zu, thus by the isomorphism theorem ϕ induces an isomorphism
3 C «
ϕ: Ñ Cˆ
Z ¨ p2πiq
2
rzs ÞÑ ez
1
(here we denote the class of z by rzs to avoid confusion with complex conjugation). Geometri-
C
cally, the quotient group Z¨p2πiq is an infinite cylinder obtained by identifying the parallel lines
0
=pzq “ 2kπ pk P Zq among themselves.
0 1 2 3 4
π
)
17
2πi
20
0 1 2 3 4 proj.
9,
0
r2
Example 158. The isomorphism theorem gives us the following isomorphisms:
«
• GLn pkq{SLn pkq Ñ kˆ , induced by the determinant (see example 50);
be
R2 «
• ÑR, induced by the morphism of additive groups R2 Ñ R given by pa, bq ÞÑ a ´ b
m
R¨p1,1q ´2πi
(see example 46);
ve
«
• Cˆ {S 1 Ñ Rą0 , induced by the morphism of multiplicative groups Cˆ Ñ Rą0 given by
No
z ÞÑ |z| (see example 49). Horizontal lines in the complex plane C are mapped by ϕ into rays from the origin in the “punc-
tured complex plane” Cˆ : line =pzq “ b in C is mapped to the ray in Cˆ forming angle b
Example 159 (Walking in circles). It is easy to check that the following function is a group (counterclockwise) with the positive real axis. In addition, the vertical line <pzq “ a in C (cor-
M
morphism: responding to a longitudinal circle on the infinite cylinder) is mapped to the circle of radius ea
with center at the origin (“puncture”) in Cˆ .
ST
φ : R SO2 pRq
ˆ ˙
cos 2πx ´ sin 2πx
x ÞÑ & Cˆ
sin 2πx cos 2πx
From example 98, φ is surjective. Since ker φ “ Z, by theorem 155 there is an induced isomor-
T
phism
(E
«
φ : R{Z Ñ SO2 pRq
T
ˆ ˙
cos 2πx ´ sin 2πx
x ÞÑ
AF
sin 2πx cos 2πx

We can also revisit the isomorphism of example 144: consider the surjective group morphism
DR
ψ : R S1
Thus, you can think of ϕ as the map that “flattens the cylinder into a punctured plane,” tak-
x ÞÑ e2πix ing longitudinal circles on the cylinder to circles centered at the origin in Cˆ , “shrinking” the
« longitudinal circles on the left and “magnifying” the ones on the right:
with ker ψ “ Z. We then get an induced isomorphism ψ : R{Z Ñ S 1 given by ψpxq “ e2πix for
x P R. In short, we have isomorphisms
SO2 pRq – R{Z – S 1
which identify the rotation of angle 2πx around the origin with the class x mod Z of x in R{Z,
and with the point e2πix P S 1 .
Example 160. Complex exponentiation

ϕ : C Cˆ
z “ a ` bi ÞÑ ez “ ea ¨ ebi “ ea ¨ pcos b ` i sin bq pa, b P Rq
Example 161 (Abelianization of a group). Let G be any group. Since the derived subgroup Proof. Piece of cake, just cancel out K in the above fractions. No, wait. . .
rG, Gs is normal (example 137), we can build the quotient The fact that K Ĳ H is clear from K Ĳ G. Moreover, by the universal property of the quotient,
def K Ď H guarantees that π : G{K G{H given by πpg mod Kq “ g mod H is well defined (and
Gab “ G{rG, Gs is a morphism!). The morphism π is surjective and its kernel is H{K, hence the result follows
We call this quotient the abelianization of G. Since ra, bs “ e ðñ a ¨ b “ b ¨ a for all a, b P G, from the isomorphism theorem.
the group Gab is abelian. In addition, Gab satisfies the following universal property: given any
Example 165. Consider the “clock group” G “ Z{12Z and its (normal) subgroup H “ x3y “
morphism φ : G Ñ A from G to an abelian group A, φ uniquely factors through the projection
t0, 3, 6, 9u. Then H “ 3Z{12Z, and therefore
map π : G Gab , i.e., there is a unique φ such that φ “ φ ˝ π (the “factorization” of φ):
G Z{12Z « Z
φ “ Ñ
G A H 3Z{12Z 3Z
π
D!φ Intuitively, while building the quotient G{H we get Z{3Z in two stages: first, we set the multiples
Gab of 12 equal to 0, yielding G “ Z{12Z; then we set the elements of H (the “multiples of 3” in G)
)
equal to 0. The end result is the same as just setting the multiples of 3 in Z equal to 0 directly.
17
In fact, by the universal property of the quotient (theorem 154), all we need to check is that φ
20
kills rG, Gs, which is clear: for any a, b P G, φpra, bsq “ rφpaq, φpbqs “ e since A is abelian.
In this sense, Gab is the largest abelian quotient of G. Exact sequences
9,
Example 162. We will show that rA4 , A4 s “ V (Klein’s four group, see example 134), and thus The following notation is often used to express the conditions of the isomorphism theorem. De-
note the trivial group simply by 1.
r2
Aab
4 – Z{3Z (example 142) will be the largest abelian quotient of A4 . Indeed, since rA4 , A4 s has
trivial image in the abelian quotient A4 {V – Z{3Z, rA4 , A4 s ď V . On the other hand,
Definition 166. A short exact sequence of groups is a sequence of group morphisms
be
p14qp23q “ rp123q, p234qs P rA4 , A4 s ùñ V ď rA4 , A4 s
i p
m
since V Ĳ A4 , and the nontrivial elements of V are exactly the permutations of type 2-2, which 1 N G H 1
ve
are the conjugates of p14qp23q in A4 .
satisfying
No
The next lemma uses the isomorphism theorem to determine the order of the group in lemma 138. • i is injective;
Lemma 163. Let G be a group. Let N Ĳ G be a normal subgroup, and H ď G be any subgroup. • p is surjective;
M
Then there is an isomorphism • ker p “ im i.
H « H ¨N
ST
π: Ñ Given a short exact sequence as above, we say that G is an extension of H by N .
H XN N
h mod H X N ÞÑ hN mod N As i is injective, we can identify N with its image, a normal subgroup of G, since it is equal to
In particular, if H and N are finite, then
& «
ker p. Moreover, p induces an isomorphism p : G{N Ñ H. Thus we may think of the above exact
sequence as a way to “decompose” G into two smaller parts, a normal subgroup N and its respec-
T
|H| ¨ |N | tive quotient G{N – H. For example, if G is finite, by the kernel-image theorem (corollary 156),
|H ¨ N | “
(E
|H X N | the above exact sequence implies that

Proof. We have already seen that H ¨N ď G. Since N is stable under conjugation by an arbitrary |G| “ |N | ¨ |H|
T
element of G, N Ĳ H ¨ N , and we can build the quotient group pH ¨ N q{N . There is a surjective
AF
morphism Example 167. Using the universal property of the quotient (theorem 154), it is easy to check
H ¨N that the following morphisms are well defined, and that the sequences are exact. Here the trivial
π: H group is denoted by 0 if the groups in question are written additively.
DR
N
h ÞÑ h ¨ N • For any integer p ě 2, the sequence
whose kernel consists of those elements h P H such that h ¨ N “ N ðñ h P N (lemma 51), i.e., xÞÑpx,0q px,yqÞÑy
0 Z{pZ Z{pZ ˆ Z{pZ Z{pZ 0
ker π “ H X N . Therefore, by the isomorphism theorem 155, π induces the isomorphism π of the
statement. If the groups H and N are finite, computing the orders of the domain and image of is exact. More generally, for any two groups A, B there is an exact sequence
π we get |H|{|H X N | “ |H ¨ N |{|N | ðñ |H ¨ N | “ |H| ¨ |N |{|H X N |.
aÞÑpa,1q pa,bqÞÑb
1 A AˆB B 1
Finally, another frequently used result that follows from the isomorphism theorem is
• For any integer p ě 2, the sequence
Lemma 164 (Cancellation). Let G be a group, and K Ď H be two normal subgroups of G.
xÞÑpx xÞÑx
Then K Ĳ H, H{K Ĳ G{K, and there is an isomorphism 0 Z{pZ Z{p2 Z Z{pZ 0
pG{Kq « G
π: Ñ is exact. Note that Z{p2 Z fl Z{pZ ˆ Z{pZ (one of the groups has an element of order
pH{Kq H p2 while the other does not). Thus, in general the “flanking groups” of a short exact
pg mod Kq mod H{K Ñ g mod H sequence do not determine the “middle group” up to isomorphism.
• In the notation of example 98, there is an exact sequence • Let c1 P C 1 ; we want to show that c1 P im n. Since p is surjective, ppdq “ tpc1 q for some
d P D. We have
inclusion det
1 SO2 pRq O2 pRq t˘1u 1 ppdq “ tpc1 q ùñ upppdqq “ uptpc1 qq “ 0 psince im t “ ker uq
Here, the determinant takes rotations to 1 (orientation is preserved) and reflections, to ðñ qpjpdqq “ 0 psince u ˝ p “ q ˝ jq
´1 (orientation is reversed). ðñ jpdq “ 0 psince q is injectiveq
• For any integer n ě 2, the dihedral group sits in an exact sequence Hence d P ker j “ im h.
aÞÑρa det
• Therefore there exists c P C such that hpcq “ d. Such c is a candidate for a pre-image of
1 Z{nZ Dn t˘1u 1 c1 P C 1 under n, but it does not always work, we will need to modify it. By construction,
c1 and npcq have the same image under t: tpnpcqq “ pphpcqq “ ppdq “ tpc1 q. As t is a
Here we think of Dn as a subgroup of O2 pRq, so that detpρa q “ 1 while detpρa σq “ ´1. morphism, tpc1 ´ npcqq “ 0 ðñ c1 ´ npcq P ker t “ im s.
• The real affine group Aff n pRq (example 127) sits in the exact sequence • Thus, there exists b1 P B 1 such that spb1 q “ c1 ´ npcq. As m is surjective, there is b P B
such that b1 “ mpbq. From n ˝ g “ s ˝ m and the fact that n is a morphism, we have
)
i p
Rn
17
1 Aff n pRq GLn pRq 1
npgpbqq “ spmpbqq “ spb1 q “ c1 ´ npcq ùñ npgpbq ` cq “ c1
20
Here i and p are defined by which proves that c1 P im n. Therefore n is surjective.
i : Rn ãÑ Aff n pRq p : Aff n pRq GLn pRq Next we will show that n is injective:
9,
ˆ ˙ ˆ ˙ • We want to show that ker n “ 0. Let c P ker n ď C. We have
I v A v
v ÞÑ n
r2
ÞÑ A npcq “ 0 ùñ tpnpcqq “ 0
0 1 0 1
ðñ pphpcqq “ 0 psince t ˝ n “ p ˝ hq
be
where A P GLn pRq, In P GLn pRq is the identity matrix, and 0 is the 1 ˆ n zero vector.
ðñ hpcq “ 0 psince p is injectiveq
m
For abelian groups, we can define exact sequences with more than 3 terms: Hence c P ker h “ im g.
ve
• Thus, there exists b P B such that gpbq “ c. We want to show that c “ 0, i.e., that
Definition 168. We say that a sequence of morphisms of abelian groups b P ker g “ im f . From s ˝ m “ n ˝ g we have
No
φi`1 φi´1 φi´2
spmpbqq “ npgpbqq “ npcq “ 0 ùñ mpbq P ker s “ im r
φi
¨¨¨ Ai Ai´1 Ai´2 ¨¨¨
• Thus there exists a1 P A1 such that rpa1 q “ mpbq. Since l is surjective, there is a P A such
M
that lpaq “ a1 . From m ˝ f “ r ˝ l we have
is an exact sequence if ker φn´1 “ im φn for all n.
ST
mpf paqq “ rplpaqq “ rpa1 q ðñ mpf paqq “ mpbq
Note that, for abelian groups, this definition agrees with the definition of a short exact sequence: ðñ f paq “ b psince m is injectiveq
to say that & Thus b P im f and n is injective, as wished.
T
i p
0 A B C 0
Semi-direct product
(E
is exact according to the above definition translates into saying that ker i “ imp0 Ñ Aq, i.e., i is The semi-direct product of two groups is a construction that abstracts properties of the following
injective, that ker p “ im i, and that kerpC Ñ 0q “ im p, i.e., p is surjective.
T
Example 170. The dihedral group Dn “ xρ, σy contains two subgroups N “ xρy and A “ xσy
AF
Example 169 (Five Lemma). Consider the following commutative diagram of abelian groups, with N Ĳ Dn and such that N X A “ tidu and N ¨ A “ Dn . Since N is normal in Dn , there is
where the rows are exact sequences: a morphism of groups
DR
φ : Dn Ñ AutpN q
f g h j
A B C D E g ÞÑ κg |N
which restricts to a morphism φ : A Ñ AutpN q. Writing the “commutativity with fee” in terms
l « m n « p q
of φ, the product in Dn “ N ¨ A can be expressed as
A1 r
B1 s
C1 t
D1 u
E1 n1 a1 ¨ n2 a2 “ n1 a1 n2 a´1
1 ¨ a1 a2 “ n 1 φpa1 qpn2 q ¨ lo
looooooomooooooon ao1mo
ao2n
PN PA
We will show that if for ni P N , ai P A.
(i) m and p are isomorphisms, and Definition 171. Let N and A be two groups, and let φ : A Ñ AutpN q be a group morphism.
(ii) l is surjective and q is injective, The semi-direct product N ¸φ A is the group that, as a set, is the Cartesian product N ˆ A,
with product given by
then n is an isomorphism.
The technique used is called “diagram chasing” because, as you will see, “we chase through the pn1 , a1 q ¨ pn2 , a2 q “ pn1 ¨ φpa1 qpn2 q, a1 a2 q ppni , ai q P N ¸φ Aq
diagram.” First let us show that n is surjective (copy the diagram and write down the elements The identity element of N ¸φ A is p1N , 1A q, and the inverse of an element is given by
if you do not want to get lost): pn, aq´1 “ pφpa´1 qpn´1 q, a´1 q.
In the above definition, note that if φ is trivial (i.e., φ “ id ðñ φpaq “ a for all a P A) The next theorem summarizes the main properties of the semi-direct product and its relation
then the semi-direct product becomes the direct product of the groups N and A (definition 4): with split exact sequences.
N ¸φ A “ N ˆ A.
Definition 172. We say that the short exact sequence Theorem 175. Let N ¸φ A be as above. Consider the following injective group mor-
phisms
i p i : N ãÑ N ¸φ A s : A ãÑ N ¸φ A
1 N G H 1
n ÞÑ pn, 1q a ÞÑ p1, aq
splits if p admits a section, i.e., a morphism of groups s : H ãÑ G such that p ˝ s “ id. (i) The subgroup ipN q is normala in N ¸φ A, and conjugation by an element of A is
given by φ, i.e.,
Note that a section s : H ãÑ G is necessarily injective: spaq “ spbq ùñ ppspaqq “ ppspbqq ðñ p1, aq ¨ pn, 1q ¨ p1, aq´1 “ pφpaqpnq, 1q
a “ b for a, b P H. Thus, if the above short exact sequence splits via s, we may identify the
)
The quotient of N ¸φ A by ipN q is isomorphic to A via the projection onto the
quotient H of G with a subgroup of G via s.
17
second coordinate p : N ¸φ A Ñ A, so that we have a short exact sequence
20
Remark 173. The name section is inspired by the following picture: let G “ N ˆ H (as a set), i p
1 N N ¸φ A A 1
and let
9,
s
p: G H This sequence splits, with a section given by s.
r2
pn, hq ÞÑ h
(ii) Given a short exact sequence
be
be the projection onto the second coordinate. To give a function s : H Ñ G such that p ˝ s “ id ι π
1 N G A 1,
is the same as to give a function s̃ : H Ñ N since we may then define sphq “ ps̃phq, hq. Then
m
the following “graph” of s̃ is a “section” of the Cartesian product G “ N ˆ H. we have G – N ¸φ A (for some φ) if and only if the sequence splits.
ve
a Note
No
G“N ˆH that in the notation N ¸φ A the direction of the “bow tie” indicates that N is
H
the normal subgroup.
M
Proof. Item (i) is a boring direct computation that you can check in the privacy of your home
ST
p when no one is looking. Thus, we only need to show that G – N ¸φ A whenever the sequence
of item (ii) splits. Let σ : A Ñ G be a section, that is, π ˝ σ “ id. Inspired by the fact that, by
& item (i), the conjugation of elements of ipN q by elements of A is given by φ, we define
φ : A Ñ AutpN q
T
def ` ˘
φpaqpnq “ ι´1 σpaqιpnqσpa´1 q
(E
pa P A, n P N q
s Note that the above definition makes sense since πpσpaqιpnqσpa´1 qq “ 1, hence σpaqιpnqσpa´1 q P
T
kerpπq “ impιq (and ι is injective).

Next we define
AF
Example 174. Consider again the affine group Aff n pkq (example 127). We saw that there is a f : G Ñ N ¸φ A
short exact sequence (example 167)
DR
` ˘
g ÞÑ ι´1 pg ¨ σpπpg ´1 qqq, πpgq .
1 kn Aff n pkq GLn pkq 1 Again, this is well-defined since g ¨ σpπpg ´1 qq P ker π “ im ι. The definition of f did not come
out of the blue: simply note that, in the semi-direct product N ¸φ A, one way of recovering the
If φ : GLn pkq Ñ Autpkn q “ GLn pkq is the identity map then we get an isomorphism Aff n pkq “ element n P N from the pair pn, aq is “to divide” pn, aq by a, that is, to perform the computation
˘´1
kn ¸φ GLn pkq since the product in Aff n pkq is given by
`
pn, aq ¨ p1, aq´1 “ pn, aq ¨ σpppn, aqq .
The rest of the proof is routine. First, note that f is a morphism. Indeed,
pu, Aq ¨ pv, Bq “ pu ` Av, ABq pu, v P kn , A, B P GLn pkqq
f pg1 g2 q “ ι´1 pg1 g2 σpπpg2´1 g1´1 qqq, πpg1 g2 q
` ˘
The morphism and ´ ¯ ´ ¯

f pg1 qf pg2 q “ ι´1 g1 σpπpg1´1 qq , πpg1 q ¨ ι´1 g2 σpπpg2´1 qq , πpg2 q
` ˘ ` ˘
GLn pkq ãÑ Aff n pkq
ˆ ˙ ´ ¯
A 0 “ ι´1 g1 σpπpg1´1 qq ¨ σpπpg1 qqg2 σpπpg2´1 qqσpπpg1´1 qq , πpg1 g2 q
` ˘
A ÞÑ “ p0, Aq
0 1 ´ ¯
“ ι´1 g1 g2 σpπpg2´1 g1´1 qq , πpg1 g2 q
` ˘
is a section of the above sequence.
Next note that f is injective: • The cyclic group Z{nZ has the presentation xt | tn y.
• The symmetric group S3 is generated by the elements p123q and p12q. Making the iden-
# #
ι´1 pgσpπpg ´1 qqq “ 1 gσpπpg ´1 qq “ 1
f pgq “ 1 ðñ ðñ ðñ g “ 1 tification a ÞÑ p123q and b ÞÑ p12q, S3 has the presentation
πpgq “ 1 πpg ´1 q “ 1
xa, b | a3 , b2 , ab “ ba2 y. (5)
Finally, f is surjective, since pn, aq “ f pιpnqσpaqq (check it!).
In this example, what we are saying is that the group given by the above presentation is
Example 176. Let p be a prime number, and consider the exact sequences isomorphic to S3 , which may not seem obvious. The relations a3 “ 1 and b2 “ 1 restrict
the number of consecutive letters a and b that can appear in a word, and the relation
xÞÑpx,0q px,yqÞÑy ab “ ba2 says that we can rearrange the order of the letters so that any word is written as
0 Z{pZ Z{pZ ˆ Z{pZ Z{pZ 0
a power of b followed by a power of a. Thus a complete list of the elements of the group
given by (5) is
0 Z{pZ
xÞÑpx
Z{p2 Z xÞÑx
Z{pZ 0 1, a, a2 , b, ba, ba2 .
)
Now it is clear that a ÞÑ p123q and b ÞÑ p12q defines an isomorphism between S3 and the
17
The first one splits (via y ÞÑ p0, yq), but the second one does not. In fact, since | AutpZ{pZq| “ group given by the above presentation.
20
p ´ 1 (see example 71), by the kernel-image theorem (corollary 156), any morphism φ : Z{pZ Ñ • The dihedral group Dn has a presentation
AutpZ{pZq has trivial image. Thus, if the second sequence were split, Z{p2 Z would be isomorphic
to the direct product Z{pZ ˆ Z{pZ, which does not happen: Z{p2 Z has a element of order p2 , xσ, ρ | σρσ “ ρ´1 , σ 2 “ 1, ρn “ 1y
9,
while all elements of Z{pZ ˆ Z{pZ are killed by p.
In general, a group G may have several distinct presentations. For example, the group S3 also
r2
Example 177. The following sequences split (just map ´1 to the reflection with respect to the has the presentation
xa, b | ab2 a2 , a2 pb2 a3 q4 a, b3 a4 bay, (6)
be
x-axis):
where a and b have the same interpretation as in (5). To see that the two presentations (5) and
m
inclusion det (6) define the same group, we show that each of the relations in one of the presentations can be
1 SO2 pRq O2 pRq t˘1u 1
ve
deduced from the relations of the other presentation.
From a3 “ 1, b2 “ 1 and ab “ ba2 , we have
aÞÑρa
No
det
1 Z{nZ Dn t˘1u 1
ab2 a2 “ a ¨ 1 ¨ a2 “ a3 “ 1,
a2 pb2 a3 q4 a “ a2 ¨ 14 ¨ a “ 1,
M
Thus, both the orthogonal and dihedral groups are examples of semi-direct products.
b3 a4 ba “ baba “ bpabqa “ bpba2 qa “ b2 a3 “ 1,
ST
Group presentation On the other hand, assuming that the relations ab2 a2 “ 1, a2 pb2 a3 q4 a “ 1, b3 a4 ba “ 1 hold, we
A usual way of describing a group is to list a set of generators and the “nontrivial relations” they & have
satisfy. For example, the free group F2 is the group generated by two symbols a and b, without • ab2 a2 “ 1 ðñ b2 “ a´3 .
further conditions other than these symbols have inverses denoted by a´1 and b´1 .
T
• Plugging the above relation in a2 pb2 a3 q4 a “ 1, we get a3 “ 1 and thus b2 “ 1, already
On the other hand, let G be the group generated by an element t that satisfies the nontrivial
(E
yielding the first two relations of (5).

relation t2 “ 1 (that is, t is its own inverse). A complete list of all elements of G is
• Finally, using b2 “ 1 and a3 “ 1, from b3 a4 ba “ 1 we get baba “ 1 ðñ ab “ b´1 a´1 “
T
1, t, ba2 , which gives the last relation of (5).

AF
because t2 “ 1 implies that any other word we write will represent one of the elements 1 or t of More generally, two distinct presentations of a group G do not even have to use the same set of
G. We say that xt | t2 “ 1y is a presentation of G, and we usually write G “ xt | t2 “ 1y. It is generators. However, given a presentation
DR
obvious that 0 ÞÑ 1, 1 ÞÑ t defines an isomorphism between Z{2Z and G. xx1 , x2 , . . . | R1 , R2 , . . .y (7)

Definition 178. Let X be a set, and R be a subset of the free group F pXq. We say that xX | Ry of a group G, Heinrich Tietze showed that any other presentation of G can be obtained from (7)
is a presentation of the group G “ F pXq{xxRyy where xxRyy denotes the smallest normal sub- by carrying out the following operations:
group of F pXq containing R (i.e., the intersection of all normal subgroups containing R), and
(T1) If the words R11 , R21 , . . . can be deduced from R1 , R2 , . . . , add R11 , R21 , . . . to the relations
we simply write G “ xX | Ry.
of (7).
By abuse of language, it is customary to write R in terms of relations that are to hold in the (T2) If some of the relations Rn1 , Rn2 , . . . of (7) can be deduced from the other relations,
quotient F pXq{xxRyy, besides denoting the elements in X and their images in the quotient by the remove them from the presentation (7).
same letters, so as to avoid overloading the notation, and make everything more “presentable”.
(T3) If R11 , R21 , . . . are arbitrary words in the generators x1 , x2 , . . . , add new symbols x11 , x12 ,
For example, if X “ ta, bu and R “ ta3 , b2 , aba´2 b´1 u (as in the third item of the example
. . . to the list of generators of (7), and also add the corresponding relations x11 “ R11 ,
below), we can write the presentation as xa, b | a3 “ b2 “ 1, ab “ ba2 y instead of the uglier form
x12 “ R21 , . . .
xta, bu | ta3 , b2 , aba´2 b´1 uy.
(T4) If some of the relations in (7) are of the form xn1 “ R11 , xn2 “ R21 , . . . , remove xn1 , xn2 ,
Example 179. • The free group Fn has a presentation where X is a set with n elements . . . from the list of generators of (7), also remove the relations xn1 “ R11 , xn2 “ R21 , . . .
and R “ H. from (7), and substitute xn1 , xn2 , . . . by R11 , R21 , . . . in the remaining relations of (7).
The transformations (T1)–(T4) above are called Tietze transformations. Each one is called Proof. The function ϕ extends uniquely to a morphism ϕ1 : F pXq Ñ H. The condition
elementary when it involves the addition or removal of a single relation or a single generator of the statement guarantees that, for any element wrw´1 P xxRyy (r P R, w P F pXq),
and corresponding relation. ϕ1 pwrw´1 q “ ϕ1 pwqϕ1 prqϕ1 pwq´1 “ 1. Therefore, by the universal property of the quotient
It is easy to see that Tietze transformations do not change the group defined by the presentation. (theorem 154), ϕ1 induces a morphism
More difficult is to show
F pXq
Theorem 180 (Tietze). Any two presentations of a group G may be obtained from one another ϕ˚ : G “ Ñ H.
xxRyy
by repeatedly performing Tietze transformations.
A proof can be found in [13]. This theorem was initially proved for finite presentations, that is, such that ϕ “ ϕ˚ ˝ i. It is clear that ϕ˚ is unique, since two morphisms G Ñ H coinciding on
of the type xX | Ry where X and R are finite, but it holds in general. It should be noted that the generating set ipXq of G must be identical.
in general there is no algorithm to decide whether or not two presentations define isomorphic
groups.
To exemplify the method of Tietze transformations, we will show that the presentation Group action
)
xa, b, c | pabq2 ab2 y
17
As we have seen, most groups are naturally born when we consider symmetries of an object X.
defines a free group in two generators:
20
An element (or symmetry) of one of these groups acts on this object X. In order to abstract and
• using (T3), add generators ab and ab2 : generalize this concept, we introduce the following
xa, b, c, x, y | pabq2 ab2 , x “ ab, y “ ab2 y
9,
Definition 182. Let G be a group, and X be a set. An action of G on X is a group morphism
r2
• by (T1), we get
2 2 2 2
xa, b, c, x, y | pabq ab , x y, x “ ab, y “ ab y α : G Ñ SX
be
• by (T2):
xa, b, c, x, y | x2 y, x “ ab, y “ ab2 y Here, as usual, SX denotes the symmetric group of X (see example 2). Intuitively, α associates
m
to each g P G a bijection αpgq : X ãÑ
Ñ X, which “acts” on X, permuting its elements. We denote
• by writing a and b in terms of x and y, we use (T1) again:
an action of G on X by
ve
xa, b, c, x, y | x2 y, x “ ab, y “ ab2 , a “ xy ´1 x, b “ x´1 yy
α
No
• now we use (T4) to eliminate a and b: GüX or simply GüX (leaving α implicit)
2 ´1 ´1 ´1 ´1 2
xc, x, y | x y, x “ pxy xqpx yq, y “ pxy xqpx yq y and, following tradition, we simply write g ¨ x as a shorthand for αpgqpxq (g P G, x P X).
M
• the last two relations of the above presentation are trivial, and we eliminate them using
ST
(T2): At first it may seem a bit confusing to use the same symbol ¨ to denote both the product in G
xc, x, y | x2 yy and the action of g P G on an element x P X. But that has been done on purpose, as one is led
• by (T1) and (T2), the above presentation is equivalent to to a second equivalent definition of group action, given by the following
xc, x, y | y “ x´2 y,
&
Lemma 183. To give an action G ü X is equivalent to giving a function
T
• finally, we apply (T4), and get the presentation
(E
GˆX ÑX
xc, xy,
pg, xq ÞÑ g ¨ x
a free group on two generators.
T
which satisfies the following two mnemonic axioms:

AF
Morphisms (i) (Trivial action of the identity element) For all x P X,

Knowing a group G by a presentation is also convenient in order to define morphisms f : G Ñ H.
DR
1¨x“x
If G is free on X, and H is any group, theorem 109 tells us that any function f : X Ñ H extends
to a morphism f˜: G Ñ H. There is a generalization of this result: if G has a presentation
(ii) (Associativity of the action) For all x P X, g, h P G,
G “ xX | Ry, a function X Ñ H that satisfies all relations in R extends to a morphism G Ñ H.
More precisely: pg ¨ hq ¨ x “ g ¨ ph ¨ xq
Theorem 181. Let G “ xX | Ry be a group presentation with X “ tai | i P Iu. Denote by
i : X Ñ G the natural map induced by the inclusion X ãÑ F pXq. Let H be another group, and Proof. Given a morphism α : G Ñ SX ,
let ϕ : X Ñ H be a function such that def
• αp1q “ idX is the identity permutation of X, hence 1 ¨ x “ αp1qpxq “ x for all x P X and
a˘1 ˘1 ˘1
i1 ai2 ¨ ¨ ¨ ain P R ùñ ϕpai1 q
˘1
¨ ¨ ¨ ϕpain q˘1 “ 1 (i) follows;
Then there is a unique group morphism ϕ˚ : G Ñ H such that ϕ “ ϕ˚ ˝ i. • from αpg ¨ hq “ αpgq ˝ αphq we get
i
X G def ` ˘ ` ˘ def
pg ¨ hq ¨ x “ αpg ¨ hqpxq “ αpgq ˝ αphq pxq “ αpgq αphqpxq “ g ¨ ph ¨ xq p˚q
ϕ D!ϕ˚
H and (ii) follows.
Conversely, given a function ¨ : G ˆ X Ñ X satisfying (i) and (ii) above, for each fixed g P G, we Example 186 (Walking in circles). Let S 1 be the multiplicative group of the complex num-
can define a function bers of absolute value 1 (see example 19). We have an action S 1 ü C via the usual complex
multiplication:
αpgq : X Ñ X def
g ¨ x “ gx pg P S 1 , x P Cq
x ÞÑ g ¨ x
In other words, this action corresponds to the group morphism α : S 1 Ñ SC that maps
Then g “ eiθ P S 1 (θ P R) to the counterclockwise rotation αpgq of angle θ and center at the ori-
gin in C. Thus the orbit of x P C is a circle of radius |x| with center at the origin (or simply
• from (i), αp1q “ idX is the identity permutation of X; the origin if x “ 0):
• from (ii), a calculation similar to p˚q above shows that αpg ¨hq “ αpgq˝αphq for all g, h P G. S 1 ¨ x “ tz P C | |z| “ |x|u
Thus αpgq ˝ αpg ´1 q “ αpg ¨ g ´1 q “ αp1q “ idX and similarly αpg ´1 q ˝ αpgq “ idX , so that The stabilizer of a point x P C is
#
Ñ X is a bijection with inverse αpg ´1 q : X ãÑ
αpgq : X ãÑ Ñ X for all g P G. Hence g ÞÑ αpgq 1 if x ‰ 0
defines a function α : G Ñ SX , which is a group morphism since αpg ¨ hq “ αpgq ˝ αphq for all Stabpxq “
S 1 if x “ 0
)
g, h P G.
17
Note that the orbits of this action partition the set C:
20
Remark 184. The above definitions are those of a left action of G on X. We can similarly
define a right action as a function
9,
X ˆGÑX
r2
px, gq ÞÑ x ¨ g
be
satisfying the axioms
(i) x ¨ 1 “ x for all x P X;
m
?
ve
(ii) px ¨ gq ¨ h “ x ¨ pg ¨ hq for all x P X, g, h P G.
Example 187 (Colorings). Let T be the equilateral triangle of vertices p1, 0q, p´1{2, ˘ 3{2q,
Equivalently, a right action of G on X is an anti-homomorphism α : G Ñ SX , i.e., a function
No
and consider its symmetry group, the dihedral group
such that αpghq “ αphq ˝ αpgq for all g, h P G. Unless otherwise stated, from now on all actions
D3 “ tid, ρ, ρ2 , σ, ρσ, ρ2 σu
will be left actions.
M
where ρ denotes the counterclockwise rotation in the plane of 120˝ and center at the origin, and
The definition of group action given by lemma 183 has the advantage of being operationally very σ, the reflection with respect to the x-axis. The group D3 acts on the vertices of T , permuting
ST
similar to the product in a group. For example, given x P X and g, h P G, there is an equivalence them. The group D3 also acts on the set X of all 23 “ 8 vertex colorings of T with two colors,
blue and red. For example,
g ¨ x “ h ¨ x ðñ ph´1 ¨ gq ¨ x “ x & ˆ ˙
ρ2 ¨ “ “σ¨ Stab “ tid, ρ2 σu
In fact, to get ñ, we “multiply on left by h´1 ,” and to get ð, we “multiply on left by h.” But
T
what exactly does it mean? To get ñ for instance, apply αph´1 q to the equality on the left; This action D3 ü X has 4 orbits:
(E
using axioms (i) and (ii) of the lemma, we get " * " * " * " *
(ii)
; ; ; ;
g ¨ x “ h ¨ x ùñ h´1 ¨ pg ¨ xq “ h´1 ¨ ph ¨ xq ùñ ph´1 ¨ gq ¨ x “ ph´1 ¨ hq ¨ x
T
For example, we have the following diagram for an orbit:

AF
(i)
ðñ ph´1 ¨ gq ¨ x “ 1 ¨ x ùñ ph´1 ¨ gq ¨ x “ x
id, ρ2 σ
DR
We will dub this “false left multiplication” a left multiplic-action. ρ, ρσ
Definition 185. Let G ü X be an action of a group G on a set X. For an element x P X and

a subset H Ď G, we define ρ2 ,ρσ
(i) the orbit of x (notation: G ¨ x) as the subset of X obtained by letting G act on x: ρ, σ ρ2 ,σ id, σ
def
G ¨ x “ tg ¨ x P X | g P Gu
ρ2 ,ρ2 σ
(ii) the stabilizer or isotropy group of x (notation: Stabpxq or Gx ) as the subgroup of G that
stabilizes x: ρ, ρ2 σ
def id, ρσ
Gx “ Stabpxq “ tg P G | g ¨ x “ xu
(iii) the fixed subset by H as the subset of X consisting of the points in X fixed by all elements Example 188 (General linear group in action). Let k be a field, and V be an n-dimensional
of H: k-vector space. The linear group GLpV q naturally acts on V , via linear transformations. Given
H def
X “ tx P X | h ¨ x “ x for all h P Hu two non-zero vectors v, w P V , there exists T P GLpV q such that T v “ w since
• if v, w are linearly independent, there is a basis e1 , e2 , . . . , en of V with e1 “ v, e2 “ w, 1 eipπ´θq
and we can take T to be the linear transformation given by T pe1 q “ e2 , T pe2 q “ e1 and Spzq “ ´ “
z r
T pei q “ ei for i ‰ 1, 2;
• otherwise λv “ w for some λ P kˆ , and there is a basis e1 , e2 , . . . , en of V with e1 “ v, z “ reiθ
so just take T given by T pe1 q “ λe1 and T pei q “ ei for i ‰ 1.
θ θ
Hence the action GLpV q ü V has only two orbits: t0u and V r t0u. 0
Example 189. Restricting the action of the previous example, we get natural actions On pRq ü
In particular, Spiq “ i, hence S P Stabpiq. More generally,
Rn and SOn pRq ü Rn of the orthogonal and special orthogonal groups (see example 97) on the
vector space Rn . As orthogonal linear transformations preserve length, taking an orthonormal Stabpiq “ SO2 pRq
basis into another (and preserving orientation in case of SOn pRq), in both cases the orbit of a
vector v P Rn is the sphere centered at the origin and radius }v} (or simply the origin if v “ 0). In fact, #
ˆ ˙
)
Thus the orbits of these actions partition Rn into “onion layers”. a b ai ` b a“d
A“
17
P Stabpiq ðñ “ i ðñ
c d ci ` d b “ ć
Example 190 (Möbius Transformations). The real line splits the complex plane into two
20
half-planes; let As ad ´ bc “ 1 ðñ a2 ` c2 “ 1, there exists θ P R such that a “ cos θ and c “ sin θ, therefore
def A P SO2 pRq is the rotation matrix of angle θ.
H “ tz P C | =pzq ą 0u
9,
On the other hand, it is easy to see that the orbit of i is the whole H: since
be the half-plane consisting of all complex numbers with positive imaginary part (the so-called
r2
ˆ ˙
a 0
Poincaré half-plane). We define an action SL2 pRq ü H by means of the so-called Möbius ¨ z “ a2 z pa P Rˆ q
0 1{a
transformations:
be
ˆ ˙ ˆ ˙ the orbit of i under diagonal matrices consists of the imaginary ray Rą0 ¨ i. Thus, composing
a b def az ` b a b
m
¨z “ for z P H and P SL2 pRq with a horizontal translation Tb P SL2 pRq where b P R, we can get any point in H.
c d cz ` d c d
ve
Remark 191. Note that matrices in
First of all, notice that if z P H and A P SL2 pRq then A ¨ z P H. This directly follows from the
No
" ˆ ˙*
identity 1 0
ˆ ˙ ˆ ˙ ZpSL2 pRqq “ ˘
az ` b =pzq a b 0 1
= “ for P SL2 pRq (8)
c d
M
cz ` d |cz ` d|2 (see example 93) act trivially on H, hence we have an induced action on H of the so-called
To check (8), simply multiply the numerator and the denominator of the above fraction by projective special linear group (see definition 212):
ST
cz ` d “ cz ` d:
def
P SL2 pRq “ SL2 pRq{ZpSL2 pRqq
az ` b az ` b cz ` d pac|z|2 ` bdq ` padz ` bczq &
“ ¨ “ As a consequence of Schwartz’s lemma, it can be shown that P SL2 pRq is precisely the group of
cz ` d cz ` d cz ` d |cz ` d|2
analytic automorphisms of H (see for example [16], theorem 2.4, p. 222).
T
And since ac|z|2 ` bd P R and =padz ` bczq “ pad ´ bcq ¨ =pzq “ =pzq, identity (8) follows. The importance of Poincaré’s half-plane H is that it is a model for the hyperbolic plane. Writing
(E
Now let us check the group action axioms of lemma 183. It is clear that the identity matrix acts z “ x ` yi P H in real coordinates x, y P R with y ą 0, the hyperbolic metric is given by
trivially on H; the associativity of the action follows from following simple calculation: on one
dx2 ` dy 2
T
hand, we have ds2 “

y2
AF
ˆˆ ˙ ˆ ˙˙ ˆ ˙
a b e f ae ` bg af ` bh pae ` bgqz ` paf ` bhq
c d
¨
g h
¨z “
ce ` dg cf ` dh
¨z “ In other words, this metric is a “distorted” version of the Euclidean metric ds2 “ dx2 ` dy 2 , in
pce ` dgqz ` pcf ` dhq
which it becomes “more and more difficult to walk” as we approach the real line (imagine a river
DR
while on the other at y “ 0 whose the upper bank becomes increasingly filled with mud as y Ñ 0). The elements of
ez`f
P SL2 pRq act as isometries in this metric, that is, they do not alter hyperbolic distance. In fact,
ˆ
a b
˙ ˆˆ
e f
˙ ˙ ˆ
a b
˙
ez ` f a ¨ gz`h `b pae ` bgqz ` paf ` bhq notice that the hyperbolic metric is unchanged by dilations z ÞÑ az (a P Rą0 ) and translations
¨ ¨z “ ¨ “ “
c d g h c d gz ` h ez`f
c ¨ gz`h ` d pce ` dgqz ` pcf ` dhq z ÞÑ z ` b (b P R), as well as by the transformation Spzq “ ´1{z, given in real coordinates by
Spx, yq “ p x2´x , y q: in fact, the pull-backs of the 1-forms dx and dy are
`y 2 x2 `y 2
which shows that these two expressions are equal.
Let us look at some examples. Let x2 ´ y 2 2xy
S ˚ dx “ dx ` 2 dy
ˆ ˙ ˆ ˙ px2 ` y 2 q2 px ` y 2 q2
def 1 a def 0 ´1
Ta “ pa P Rq S “ 2xy x2 ´ y 2
0 1 1 0 S ˚ dy “ ´ dx ` 2 dy
px2 ` y 2 q2 px ` y 2 q2
Matrix T acts as z ÞÑ z ` a, translating the elements of H by a to the right, while S acts as
and therefore after some calculations
z ÞÑ ´1{z, mapping reiθ to eipπ´θq {r for r P Rą0 and θ P p0, πq, that is, S is a inversion
ˆ 2
dx ` dy 2 pS ˚ dxq2 ` pS ˚ dyq2 dx2 ` dy 2
˙
with respect to the circle |z| “ 1, followed by a reflection with respect to the imaginary axis, as
depicted below: S˚ “ “
y2 y 2 {px2 ` y 2 q2 y2
Since any Möbius transformation corresponding to matrices in SL2 pRq can be written as a Proof. (i) We must check that
composition of the above transformations, this proves that P SL2 pRq acts by isometries on H.
Therefore P SL2 pRq is the hyperbolic analog of the group of symmetries of the real plane equipped
• Stabpxq is closed under product: if g, h P Stabpxq then pg ¨ hq ¨ x “ g ¨ ph ¨ xq “ g ¨ x “ x,
with the Euclidean metric, the so-called affine orthogonal group, which is the subgroup of the
hence g ¨ h P Stabpxq;
affine group (see example 127) given by
def • Stabpxq is closed under inverse: “left multiplic-action by g ´1 ” gives
AO2 pRq “ R2 ¸ O2 pRq ď Aff 2 pRq
Example 192 (Self-action). Let G be any group. There are two important actions G ü G:
g P Stabpxq ðñ g ¨ x “ x ùñ x “ g ´1 ¨ x ðñ g ´1 P Stabpxq
• Action by conjugation: it is the action given by the group morphism
G Ñ AutpGq ď SG
(ii) We must check that h P Stabpg ¨ xq ðñ h P g ¨ Stabpxq ¨ g ´1 for h P G, which follows from
g ÞÑ κg the chain of equivalences
where κg pxq “ gxg ´1 denotes conjugation by g P G (see example 13). Given x P G,
)
the stabilizer of x is its centralizer Zpxq, i.e., the subgroup consisting of all elements h P Stabpg ¨ xq ðñ h ¨ pg ¨ xq “ g ¨ x
17
commuting with x (c.f. example 22):
p˚q ` ˘
20
def ðñ g ´1 ¨ h ¨ pg ¨ xq “ g ´1 ¨ pg ¨ xq
Stabpxq “ Zpxq “ tg P G | gx “ xgu
The orbits of the conjugation action G ü G are called conjugacy classes of G. ðñ pg ´1 hgq ¨ x “ x ðñ g ´1 hg P Stabpxq
9,
For example, if G is abelian, the conjugacy classes are the singletons txu with x P G. On ðñ h P g ¨ Stabpxq ¨ g ´1
r2
the other hand, by example 74, a conjugacy class in the symmetric group Sn consists of
permutations with the same cycle decomposition type, i.e., of permutations whose cycle Note that equivalence p˚q follows by “left multiplic-action” by g ´1 (respectively g) for the
be
lengths determine the same (unordered) partition of n. For example, for n “ 4, there implication ñ (respectively ð).
are 5 partitions in total:
m
4“1`3“2`2“1`1`2“1`1`1`1 (iii) As in the proof of Lagrange’s theorem (theorem 52), we must show that
ve
The corresponding conjugacy classes in S4 are
No
tp1234q, p1243q, p1324q, p1342q, p1423q, p1432qu • every x P X belongs to some orbit;
tp123q, p132q, p124q, p142q, p134q, p143q, p234q, p243qu
• if two orbits collide, they are the same:
M
tp12qp34q, p13qp24q, p14qp23qu
ST
tp12q, p13q, p14q, p23q, p24q, p34qu G ¨ x1 X G ¨ x2 ‰ H ùñ G ¨ x1 “ G ¨ x2 px1 , x2 P Xq
tp1qu
respectively. & The first item is immediate because x belongs to its own orbit: 1 ¨ x “ x ùñ x P G ¨ x. To
• Action by left translation: for g P G, let check the second item, let y P G ¨ x1 X G ¨ x2 , say y “ g1 ¨ x1 “ g2 ¨ x2 (g1 , g2 P G). Then
T
λg : G ãÑ
ÑG by “left multiplic-action by g1´1 ” we get
(E
x ÞÑ gx
g1 ¨ x1 “ g2 ¨ x2 ùñ x1 “ g1´1 g2 ¨ x2
be the left translation by g. By the shuffle lemma 11, λg is a bijection from G into G,
T
i.e., λg P SG . Since λgh “ λg ˝ λh , we get a group morphism ùñ G ¨ x1 “ G ¨ pg1´1 g2 ¨ x2 q

AF
G Ñ SG ùñ G ¨ x1 “ G ¨ x2
g ÞÑ λg
DR
That is, we have an action G ü G by left translation. Note that Stabpxq “ 1 for all Here, in the last implication we use the shuffle lemma 11: Gg1´1 g2 “ G since right transla-
x P G. tion by g1´1 g2 permutes the elements of G.
The following lemma makes explicit some of the elementary phenomena seen in the above exam-
ples.
Lemma 193. Let G ü X be an action of the group G on the set X.

Definition 194. The set of orbits of an action G ü X is denoted by X{G. This notation is
(i) For any x, Stabpxq ď G. consistent with the notion of the quotient of X by the equivalence relation (i.e. partition) defined
(ii) (Base Change Formula) For g P G and x P X, by the orbits of this action.
Stabpg ¨ xq “ g Stabpxqg ´1
Unlike the Lagrangian partition, for a group action the orbits (equivalence classes) may have
(iii) The orbits of G ü X form a partition of the set X. different sizes in general. The size of an orbit is inversely proportional to the size of the stabilizer
of any element in this orbit, as we shall see in theorem 195.
Orbit-stabilizer theorem and class formula Definition 198. Let p be a prime. A finite group G is a p-group if |G| “ pn for some integer
n ě 1.
In this and the next section, we will prove the three most important theorems about group
actions. Theorem 199 (Fixed Point Theorem for p-groups). Let p be a prime, and P be a p-group.
Let P ü X be an action of P on a finite set X. Then
def
X P “ tx P X | gx “ x for all g P P u,
Theorem 195 (Orbit-stabilizer theorem). Let G ü X be an action of the group G
on the set X. Given x P X, there is a bijection between the set of left cosets of Stabpxq the set of fixed points of this action, satisfies
and the orbit of x:
|X P | ” |X| pmod pq
ψ : G{ Stabpxq ãÑ
ÑG¨x
In particular, if p - |X| then there is at least one point x P X fixed by all g P P .
g ¨ Stabpxq ÞÑ g ¨ x
Proof. Note that x P X P if and only if P ¨ x “ txu, that is, if and only if |P ¨ x| “ 1. Hence there
Therefore the cardinality of the orbit of x is equal to the index of its stabilizer: are exactly |X P | orbits of size 1. Let xi P X be representatives of orbits of size strictly bigger
)
than 1. Since |P | is a p-power, by the orbit-stabilizer theorem 195
17
|G ¨ x| “ rG : Stabpxqs
|P |
|P ¨ xi | “ ą 1 is a multiple of p
20
In particular, if G is finite, | Stabpxi q|
|G|
|G ¨ x| “ Hence by the class formula
9,
| Stabpxq| ÿ |P |
|X| “ |X P | ` ” |X P | pmod pq
r2
(Intuitively: the size of the orbit of x is equal to the maximum size |G| divided by the
| Stabpx i q|
number of “repetitions” | Stabpxq|). i
be
Example 200. Let p be a prime number, and consider the group of upper unitriangular matrices
m
Proof. First, let us show that the above function ψ is well defined, i.e., that if g1 ¨ Stabpxq “
g2 ¨ Stabpxq then g1 ¨ x “ g2 ¨ x. Just unravel the definitions: by lemma 51, with entries in Fp (example 135)
ve
$¨ ˛ ,
& 1 ˚ ˚
g1 ¨ Stabpxq “ g2 ¨ Stabpxq ðñ g2´1 ¨ g1 P Stabpxq
.
def
No
U T3 pFp q “ ˝0 1 ˚ P GL3 pFp q
‚
ðñ pg2´1 ¨ g1 q ¨ x “ x 0 0 1
% -
(here ˚ denotes any element of Fp ). This group is a p-group since |U T3 pFp q| “ p3 , and it natu-
M
ðñ g1 ¨ x “ g2 ¨ x
rally acts on the vector space F3p . As |F3p | “ p3 , by the above theorem the number of fixed points
ST
Note that the last equivalence follows as in p˚q in the proof of lemma 193(ii). Not only does the of this action is a multiple of p. In addition, since p0, 0, 0q is clearly a fixed point, this number
above calculation show that ψ is well defined, but also that ψpg1 ¨ Stabpxqq “ ψpg2 ¨ Stabpxqq ùñ is not 0. Indeed, explicitly finding all fixed points, we see that there are exactly p of them:
g1 ¨ Stabpxq “ g2 ¨ Stabpxq, that is, that ψ is injective. & pF3p qU T3 pFp q “ tp˚, 0, 0q P F3p u
We are left to show that ψ is surjective, but that is obvious: a pre-image of an element g ¨ x in the
orbit of x is, guess what, (pause for effect) g ¨ Stabpxq, for heaven’s sake! Hence ψ is bijective; the As a corollary of the fixed point theorem, we have the following important result on the structure
T
other statements follow directly from the definition of index of a subgroup (definition 56). of p-groups.
(E
Theorem 201. Let p be a prime number, and let P be a p-group.

Example 196. In the action of example 187, for the coloring (i) The center ZpP q of P (example 22) is nontrivial.
T
(ii) P has normal subgroups of all orders dividing |P |.

AF
x“
(iii) If |P | “ p2 then P is abelian. Therefore P is isomorphic either to Z{pZ ˆ Z{pZ or to
Z{p2 Z.
DR
we have Stabpxq “ tid, ρ2 σu, hence the orbit D3 ¨ x has size |D3 |{| Stabpxq| “ 6{2 “ 3 (consisting
of the colorings with two red vertices and a blue one). Proof. (i) Consider the action by conjugation P ü P (example 192); then ZpP q is the set
of fixed points of P . Thus, by the fixed-point theorem, |ZpP q| ” |P | ” 0 pmod pq. Since
1 P ZpP q, |ZpP q| ą 0, and thus |ZpP q| ě p.
Directly from the orbit-stabilizer theorem and the fact that the orbits partition a set
(lemma 193(iii)), we get (ii) Let |P | “ pn . The proof is by induction on n. If n “ 1, by Lagrange’s theorem (corol-
lary 53) the only subgroups of P are 1 and P (i.e., P is simple, see definition 218), and the
result is obvious. Now if n ą 1, suppose there is a normal subgroup N Ÿ P of order p. In
Corollary 197 (Class Formula). Let G ü X be an action of a finite group G on that case, as |P {N | “ pn´1 we can apply the induction hypothesis to P {N and get, for each
a finite set X. Let x1 , . . . , xr P X be class representatives of the orbits of this action. r with 0 ď r ď n ´ 1, a normal subgroup H Ĳ P {N with |H| “ pr . By the correspondence
Then theorem (theorem 150) and the remark thereafter, H corresponds to a normal subgroup
ÿ |G| H Ĳ P of order |H| “ pr`1 .
|X| “
1ďiďr
| Stabpx i q| In order to get N as above, simply choose any g P ZpP q of order p, and let N “ xgy; as g
commutes with all elements of P , we automatically have N Ÿ P . Note that such g exists
since, by the previous item, ZpP q ‰ 1; taking any h P ZpP q, h ‰ 1, the order of h will be
i´1
Let us look at an application in the study of p-groups. some p-power pi with i ě 1, and thus g “ hp will have order p, as desired.
(iii) By (i) and Lagrange, ZpP q has order p or p2 . We want show that |ZpP q| “ p2 , and thus P Hence, the total sum of weights 1 ` 3 ¨ 13 ` 3 ¨ 13 ` 1 “ 4 is equal to the number of orbits.
is abelian. For the sake of contradiction, suppose that |ZpP q| “ p, so that |P {ZpP q| “ p. By the orbit-stabilizer theorem 195, the sum p˚q is equal to
By corollary 54, P {ZpP q is cyclic; let g be a generator. Then there is a decomposition of
P as a disjoint union of cosets
ÿ 1 ÿ | Stabpxq| 1 ÿ
“ “ | Stabpxq|
2
P “ ZpP q Y gZpP q Y g ZpP q Y ¨ ¨ ¨ Y g p´1
ZpP q xPX
|G ¨ x| xPX
|G| |G| xPX
Thus, every element of P can be written as g i a “ ag i with 0 ď i ă p and a P ZpP q. Clearly, Thus, in order to complete the proof, it suffices to show that
any two of these elements commute, and thus P is abelian. ÿ ÿ
Finally, if there is an element of order p2 in P , then P is cyclic, and thus P – Z{p2 Z. | Stabpxq| “ |X g | p˚˚q
Otherwise, all elements have orders dividing p, and so we can define a scalar multiplication xPX gPG
by an integer mod p:
which amounts to a double counting, since both sides count the number of pairs pg, xq P G ˆ X
Fp ˆ P Ñ P such that g ¨ x “ x. In fact, think of a table whose rows are indexed by the elements of G and
pa, gq ÞÑ g a whose columns are indexed by the elements of X; put a ♥ in each entry pg, xq such that g ¨ x “ x.
)
For example, for the action of example 187, we get
17
In other words, P is a finite Fp -vector space, hence it is isomorphic (as a vector space, hence
also as an abelian group) to Fn n n
p for some n P N. As |Fp | “ p , we must have n “ 2, and so
20
P – F2p “ Z{pZ ˆ Z{pZ.
If for some reason you want a proof not relying on Linear Algebra, it is enough to take an
9,
element v P P of order p and an element w P P r xvy, and show directly (decomposing P id ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥
r2
into cosets of xvy as above) that v, w form a basis of P over Fp , i.e., that each element of P ρ ♥ ♥
can be uniquely written as v a wb with 0 ď a, b ă p. Hence we explicitly get an isomorphism ρ2 ♥ ♥
be
«
Z{pZ ˆ Z{pZ Ñ P σ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥
ρσ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥
m
a b
pa, bq ÞÑ v w
ρ2 σ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥
ve
We have that |X g | is the number of ♥’s in row g P G, while | Stabpxq| is the number of ♥’s in
No
column x P X. Thus, both sums in p˚˚q count the total number of ♥’s in the table: the sum on
Burnside’s lemma the left, by columns, while the sum on the right, by rows.
M
We have a practical formula for counting the number of distinct orbits of finite actions. Example 203. In how many ways can we color the vertices of a square with 3 colors up to
ST
rotations and reflections (i.e., considering two colorings equivalent if one can be taken into the
other by a symmetry of the square)?
Theorem 202 (Burnside’s lemma). Let G be a finite group, and X be a finite set. & In group action language, we want to find the number of orbits in the action of the dihedral
Given an action G ü X, the total number of orbits of this action is equal to the average
group D4 “ tid, ρ, ρ2 , ρ3 , σ, ρσ, ρ2 σ, ρ3 σu on the space X of all 34 colorings of the vertices of the
number of fixed points by elements of G:
T
square with 3 colors. By Burnside’s lemma, we need to compute the average number of fixed
(E
1 ÿ colorings by elements of D4 . We will see below that

number of orbits “ |X g |
|G| gPG
g id ρ ρ2 ρ3 σ ρσ ρ2 σ ρ3 σ
T
|X g | 34 3 32 3 33 32 33 32
AF
Proof. We can count the number of orbits by assigning to each element of x P X a “weight” that
is inversely proportional to the size of its orbit: and therefore the total number of orbits is
DR
ÿ 1
number of orbits “ p˚q 1 ÿ 34 ` 2 ¨ 3 ` 32 ` 2 ¨ 32 ` 2 ¨ 33
|G ¨ x| |X g | “ “ 21
xPX |D4 | gPD 8
4
In fact, given an orbit G ¨ x1 “ tx1 , . . . , xn u of size n, each xi contributes 1{n to the sum p˚q,
thus the whole orbit contributes n ¨ p1{nq “ 1 to p˚q. For instance, for the action of example 187, For each g P D4 , let us calculate |X g |; in what follows, a, b, c, d represent (not necessarily dis-
we have the following distribution of weights according to the different orbits: tinct) colors.
• g “ id: all colorings are fixed by g, hence |X g | “ 34 ; the coloring pattern is arbitrary:
b
c a
d
• g “ ρ or ρ3 :
here, the fixed colorings are only those where all vertices have the same
weight 1 weight 1/3 each weight 1/3 each weight 1 color, thus |X g | “ 3 for each of these two cases; the coloring pattern is monochromatic:
a (iii) faithful if the corresponding group morphism α : G ãÑ SX is injective, that is, if we can
a a view G as a subgroup of the symmetry group of X. Equivalently, the action is faithful if
its kernel is trivial, i.e., if
a
č
Stabpxq “ 1
xPX
• g “ ρ2 : the pattern of a fixed coloring by ρ2 is
In words: the only g P G that stabilizes all x P X is the identity.
b (iv) free if Stabpxq “ 1 for all x P X , that is, if all elements g ‰ 1 in G are fixed point free.
a a Note that a free action is automatically faithful.
b Example 205. • The natural action Sn ü t1, 2, . . . , nu is faithful, transitive, but not free
if n ě 3.
That is, there are “ 2 degrees of freedom” for the coloring, hence |X g | “ 32 .
• The action of the dihedral group Dn on the vertices of a regular n-gon is faithful, transi-
• g “ σ or σρ2 : Fixed colorings have a symmetrical pattern with respect to the reflection tive, but not free (some reflections have fixed points).
)
17
axis:
• The action SL2 pRq ü H of example 190 is transitive, but not faithful: we have
σρ2
20
ˆ ˙
b ´1 0
b ¨ x “ x for all x P X
σ 0 ´1
c a
9,
a a
• Let k a field, and V be a nontrivial finite dimensional k-vector space. The natural action
r2
b c GLpV q ü V is faithful, but it is neither transitive (there are two orbits by example 188)
nor free (0 P V is a fixed point for all T P GLpV q).
be
There are “ 3 degrees of freedom” for the coloring, hence |X g | “ 33 . • The action by left translation G ü G of a group G on itself (example 192) is transitive
m
• g “ σρ or σρ3 : now there are only “ 2 degrees of freedom,” hence |X g | “ 32 : and free (hence faithful as well).
ve
ρ3 σ ρσ Lemma 206. Let G ü X be a 2-transitive action. For all x P X, Stabpxq is a maximal
a
No
b subgroup of G, i.e.,
b a b a Stabpxq ď H ď G ùñ H “ Stabpxq or H “ G
M
a b Proof. Let x P X, and suppose that H ď G is such that H Ľ Stabpxq; we want to show that
ST
H “ G. We claim that H “ G ðñ H ¨ x “ X. Indeed:
Transitivity, Faithfulness, and Freeness pñq Since G ü X is transitive (due to 2-transitivity), if H “ G then H ¨ x “ G ¨ x “ X;
Let G ü X be an action of a group G on a set X. Let n ě 1 be an integer, and consider the

& pðq It suffices to show that H{ Stabpxq “ G{ Stabpxq, i.e., that H contains all the left cosets
of Stabpxq in G. By the orbit-stabilizer theorem 195, there is a bijection
def
subset ∆n of the Cartesian product Xn “ X ˆ . . . ˆ X (n times) consisting of the n-tuples
T
whose coordinates are pairwise distinct: ψ : G{ Stabpxq ãÑ
ÑX
(E
def g ¨ Stabpxq ÞÑ g ¨ x
∆n “ tpx1 , . . . , xn q P X n | xi ‰ xj if i ‰ ju
which restricts to a bijection between H{ Stabpxq and an H-orbit of x. Thus, if H ¨ x “ X,
T
Since xi “ xj ðñ g ¨ xi “ g ¨ xj by multiplic-action by g and g ´1 , we also have since G ü X is transitive,

AF
xi ‰ xj ùñ g ¨ xi ‰ g ¨ xj , and thus the action G ü X gives rise to a “diagonal action”

G ü ∆n defined by ψpH{ Stabpxqq “ H ¨ x “ X “ G ¨ x “ ψpG{ Stabpxqq
DR
g ¨ px1 , . . . , xn q “ pg ¨ x1 , . . . , g ¨ xn q pg P G, px1 , . . . , xn q P ∆n q Since ψ is bijective, H{ Stabpxq “ G{ Stabpxq, thus H “ G.

As x P H ¨ x, in order to prove that H ¨ x “ X we must show that, given any y P X with y ‰ x,
Definition 204. Let G ü X be an action of a group G on a set X. Let n ě 1 be an integer. y P H ¨ x. Take any h P H r Stabpxq (recall that by hypothesis H Ľ Stabpxq), so that h ¨ x ‰ x.
We say that G ü X is By 2-transitivity there exists g P G such that
(i) transitive if G ü X has a single orbit, that is, if given x1 , x2 P X there exists (at least one) # #
g P G such that g ¨ x1 “ x2 . In that case, for any x P X, the orbit-stabilizer theorem 195 gx “ x g P Stabpxq
g ¨ px, hxq “ px, yq ðñ ðñ
yields a bijection gh ¨ x “ y gh ¨ x “ y
G{ Stabpxq ãÑ
ÑX As H ě Stabpxq, gh P H, and thus y P H ¨ x, as wished.
g ¨ Stabpxq ÞÑ g ¨ x
(ii) n-transitive if |X| ě n and the diagonal action G ü ∆n is transitive, that is, if given two
Geometric Actions
n-tuples px1 , . . . , xn q and py1 , . . . , yn q of points in X with xi ‰ xj and yi ‰ yj for i ‰ j, Group actions are particularly important in Geometry: in the study of a geometric object X, an
there exists (at least one) g P G such that g ¨ xi “ yi for all 1 ď i ď n. Note that an important technique is to consider actions of a group G via symmetries of X. Let us look at two
n-transitive action is also m-transitive for all 1 ď m ď n. important examples: the projective space and the hyperbolic plane.
Projective space and the linear projective group On the other hand, the complement of this copy of k in P1k corresponds to the horizontal direction
def
Definition 207. Let k be a field, and V be a k-vector space of dimension n ` 1. The projective given by the line y “ 0, which we can be thought of as an “extra point at infinity” 8 “ p1 : 0q
space PpV q is the set of all 1-dimensional subspaces of V (i.e., PpV q is the set of all lines in added to k. In short, P1k consists of a copy of the line k together with this point 8. Thus, we
V passing through the origin, or yet the set of all directions in V ). The dimension of PpV q is see that P1k is a “one-dimensional object.”
defined to be n “ dimk V ´ 1.
Remark 209. If k “ R, there is a bijection of P1R with a circle; the complement of 8 “ p1 : 0q
We can also describe PpV q as follows: on the set of non-zero vectors of V , define an equivalence is identified with the real line via the stereographic projection from the “north pole” 8:
relation „ that identifies v, w P V r t0u if they generate the same 1-dimensional subspace, i.e.,
def
8 “ p1 : 0q
v „ w ðñ v “ λw for some λ P kˆ
Then PpV q is the quotient set by this relation (see remark 57); denoting the equivalence class of
v P V r t0u by rvs, we have
pr : 1q
)
V r t0u
17
PpV q “ “ trvs | v P V r t0uu
„
20
Note that rvs is essentially the 1-dimensional subspace generated by v, or the direction/line r
through the origin determined by the vector v. Thus, we can think of PpV q as a space that
9,
“parameterizes directions in V .” Visually, 8 is the “boundary” of the copy of R in P1R , the point where the “left and right end-
For V “ kn`1 , we can explicitly describe PpV q in terms of coordinates. Write pa0 : a1 : ¨ ¨ ¨ : an q points” of the real line meet. Thus, P1R , viewed as a circle, is a compact space, and therefore
r2
to denote the equivalence class of a nonzero pn ` 1q-tuple pa0 , a1 , . . . , an q P kn`1 , so that has better properties compared to the real affine line R. This is the main motivation for the
introduction of the projective space in general: to get a “compactification” of the affine space
be
pa0 : a1 : ¨ ¨ ¨ : an q “ pb0 : b1 : ¨ ¨ ¨ : bn q
kn , by adding “points at infinity to make up the boundary of kn ”.
ðñ there exists λ P kˆ such that ai “ λbi for all i “ 0, 1, . . . , n
m
Example 210 (Projective plane). As in the previous example, we have a decomposition
ve
Note that the above notation was purposely designed so that we can “cancel out a common
factor” without altering the equivalence class of the tuple: P2k “ tpa : b : 1q | a, b P ku Y tpa : 1 : 0q | a P ku Y tp1 : 0 : 0qu
No
ˆ bijection
pλa0 : λa1 : ¨ ¨ ¨ : λan q “ pa0 : a1 : ¨ ¨ ¨ : an q pλ P k q “ k2 Y k Y t8u
We will denote so that P2k is the union of a copy of k2 and one of P1k . In that way, we “compactify” the affine
M
def plane k2 by adding a whole copy of the projective line P1k to act as the “boundary of k2 at in-
Pn n`1
ST
k “ Ppk q “ tpa0 : a1 : ¨ ¨ ¨ : an q | ai P k not all zerou finity”. We can think of one of these “extra points at infinity” as the “intersection point of a
Example 208 (Projective line). In P1k we have pencil of parallel lines in k2 ”:
$` a
& a0 : 1
˘
if a1 ‰ 0
&
1
pa0 : a1 q “
T
pa0 : 0q “ p1 : 0q if a1 “ 0
%
(E
(remember that a1 “ 0 ùñ a0 ‰ 0 since both coordinates cannot simultaneously vanish). As

pr : 1q “ pr1 : 1q ðñ r “ r1 , there is a copy of the affine line k in P1k via the injection
T
same point
AF
k ãÑ P1k
r ÞÑ pr : 1q
DR
Each point pr : 1q of this copy represents a non-horizontal direction of the plane k2 , namely the
direction given by the line x “ ry, which in turn corresponds bijectively to the point pr, 1q of the
line y “ 1, as shown in the following picture: There is exactly one point for each pencil/direction of the plane k2 , making up a copy of P1k in
P2k .
x “ ´2y x“y x “ 3y This interpretation already indicates an important geometric property of the projective plane: in
P2k , there are no parallel lines. But wait, what is a line in P2k ? By definition, it is a subset of
y“1 the form
r “ tpx : y : zq P P2k | ax ` by ` cz “ 0u
3
with pa, b, cq P k r p0, 0, 0q. Since multiplying all coefficients of ax ` by ` cz “ 0 by a constant
does not alter the line, there is a bijection between lines and points in P2k , given by
point pa : b : cq Ø line ax ` by ` cz “ 0
If pa, bq “ p0, 0q then c ‰ 0, and r is the “line at infinity z “ 0”, the copy of P1k in P2k described
above. On the other hand, if pa, bq ‰ p0, 0q then r is the union of
• a regular line of equation ax ` by ` c “ 0 in the copy of k2 given by points of the form Definition 212. Let k be a field, and V be an n-dimensional k-vector space. The projective
pa0 : a1 : 1q in P2k ; and linear group P GLpV q is the quotient
• a “point at infinity” p´b : a : 0q, the intersection point of r and the “line at infinity GLpV q GLpV q
z “ 0”, which represents the direction given by the line ax ` by ` c “ 0 in k2 . P GLpV q “ ` ˘ “
Z GLpV q kˆ ¨ I
Now, given two lines in P2k of equations
(here I P GLpV q is the identity). Similarly, we define the projective special linear group as
#
a1 x ` b1 y ` c1 z “ 0 SLpV q SLpV q
P SLpV q “ ` ˘ “
a2 x ` b2 y ` c2 z “ 0 Z SLpV q µn pkq ¨ I
there are two cases: where µn pkq “ ta P kˆ | an “ 1u denotes the group of all n-th roots of unity in k. In case
V “ kn , we denote
• either they are the same, when the vectors pa1 , b1 , c1 q and pa2 , b2 , c2 q are linearly depen-
dent, i.e., pa1 : b1 : c1 q “ pa2 : b2 : c2 q; def def
P GLn pkq “ P GLpkn q P SLn pkq “ P SLpkn q
)
and
17
• or the above homogeneous system has as its solution a 1-dimensional vector subspace of
k3 , which determines a single point in P2k . We have the following commutative diagram with exact rows
20
Thus, two distinct lines have exactly one intersection point. If these lines are parallel in the copy 1 µn pkq SLpV q P SLpV q 1
9,
of k2 in P2k , this intersection point belongs to the “line at infinity P1k ,” the point corresponding
to the common direction in k2 determined by these two lines.
r2
1 kˆ GLpV q P GLpV q 1
Example 211. Let Fq be the finite field with q elements. Since each of the q n`1 ´ 1 nonzero
be
aÞÑan
vectors in Fqn`1 has q ´ 1 nonzero multiples, we get det
m
kˆ kˆ
q n`1 ´ 1
|Pn “ q n ` q n´1 ` ¨ ¨ ¨ ` q ` 1
ve
Fq | “
q´1 and by the isomorphism theorem 155, the inclusion SLpV q ãÑ GLpV q induces the dashed injective
No
map
We can also obtain the above formula recursively, using the fact that Pn
Fq is a union of a copy SLpV q SLpV q GLpV q
of Fn n´1
(as in the previous example), hence |Pn n n´1 P SLpV q “ “ ãÑ ˆ “ P GLpV q
q and a copy of PFq Fq | “ q ` |PFq |. µn pkq ¨ I SLpV q X kˆ ¨ I k Ï
M
The projective plane P2F2 is called Fano plane. It has |P2F2 | “ 7 points and 7 lines (each with so that we can think of P SLpV q as a subgroup of P GLpV q.
ST
|P1F2 | “ 3 points), and it is usually represented by the following picture. Here, the central point Note also that P GLn`1 pkq and P SLn`1 pkq act on Pn k as follows. Let
has coordinates p1 : 0 : 1q, and the sides and medians of the triangle represent projective lines, ¨
a00 a01 . . . a0n
˛
as well as the circle, of course! The equation of the latter “circular line” is y ` z “ 0. & ˚ a10 a11 . . . a1n ‹
A“˚ . .. ‹ P GLn`1 pkq
˚ ‹
T
˝ .. . ‚
p1 : 1 : 0q
(E
an0 an1 . . . ann
be a matrix, identified with the corresponding linear transformation in kn`1 relative to the
T
p1 : 1 : 1q p1 : 0 : 0q standard basis. Since A maps the vector v “ px0 , . . . , xn q to the vector Av, A maps the class
AF
rvs “ px0 : ¨ ¨ ¨ : xn q to the class rAvs (i.e., the line through the origin given by v to the line
through the origin given by Av). Thus, if A denotes the image of A in P GLn`1 pkq or P SLn`1 pkq,
p0 : 0 : 1q p0 : 1 : 0q
we have
DR
p0 : 1 : 1q ` ÿ ÿ ÿ ˘
A ¨ px0 : x1 : ¨ ¨ ¨ : xn q “ a0i xi : a1i xi : ¨ ¨ ¨ : ani xi
0ďiďn 0ďiďn 0ďiďn
Now let us look at the group of symmetries of the projective space PpV q associated with a k-
vector space V (k a field). There is a natural action GLpV q ü PpV q, since an invertible linear Example 213 (Möbius revisited). Let A P P GL2 pCq be an element represented by the matrix
transformation permutes the 1-dimensional subspaces of V . Let α : GLpV q Ñ SPpV q be the group ˆ ˙
morphism associated with this action. We have ZpGLpV qq ď ker α since there is a canonical iso- a b
A“ P GL2 pCq
morphism ZpGLpV qq “ kˆ (see example 93), and scalar multiplication maps a 1-dimensional c d
subspace into itself. Consider the quotient group
Then A acts on the point pz0 : z1 q P P1C as
def
P GLpV q “ GLpV q{ZpGLpV qq A ¨ pz0 : z1 q “ paz0 ` bz1 : cz0 ` dz1 q
By the universal property of the quotient (theorem 154), there is an induced morphism If z1 ‰ 0 and cz0 ` dz1 ‰ 0, defining z “ z0 {z1 we can write
α : P GLpV q Ñ SPpV q , i.e., an induced action P GLpV q ü PpV q. We will see below that this z0
á ¨ `b ´ az ` b
action is faithful, thus P GLpV q ought to be thought of as the group of symmetries of the pro-
¯ ¯
z1
A ¨ p zz0 : 1q “ z0 :1 ðñ A ¨ pz : 1q “ :1
jective space PpV q. 1 c¨ z1
`d cz ` d
For z1 “ 0, i.e., for the “point at infinity” p1 : 0q, we get A ¨ p1 : 0q “ pa : cq, which is equal Actions on the hyperbolic plane
to pa{c : 1q if c ‰ 0 or to the point at infinity p1 : 0q if c “ 0. Similarly, if cz0 ` dz1 “ 0 then
A ¨ pz0 : z1 q “ p1 : 0q. In others words, the action of A coincides with the action of the Möbius We now turn to the study of actions on the hyperbolic plane, in our case modeled by Poincaré’s
transformation half-plane H (see remark 191). Let SL2 pZq be the subgroup of SL2 pRq consisting of 2ˆ2 matrices
az ` b with integer entries:
z ÞÑ
cz ` d "ˆ ˙ˇ *
on the extended complex plane C Y t8u (the Riemann sphere), which is nothing other than the def a b
SL2 pZq “ ˇ a, b, c, d P Z, ad ´ bc “ 1
ˇ
complex projective line P1C . c d
The main result of this subsection is the following Restricting the action of example 190, we get an action SL2 pZq ü H via Möbius transformations.
Lemma 214. Let a k a field, and V be an n-dimensional k-vector space. The actions
P GLpV q ü PpV q and P SLpV q ü PpV q are faithful and 2-transitive. Theorem 216. Let D Ď H be the region given by
)
17
Proof. Since P SLpV q can be viewed as a subgroup of P GLpV q via the inclusion induced by def
! ˇ 1 1 ) ! iθ ˇˇ π 2π )
D “ z P H ˇ |z| ą 1 and ´ ď <pzq ă Y e ˇ ďθď ,
ˇ
SLpV q ãÑ GLpV q, the action P SLpV q ü PpV q is a restriction of the action P GLpV q ü PpV q, 2 2 2 3
20
hence it suffices to show that
as depicted below.
• P GLpV q ü PpV q is faithful: given a linear transformation A P GLpV q that stabilizes
9,
all lines through the origin in V , we want to show that A P ZpGLpV qq “ kˆ ¨ I (here
r2
I P GLpV q is the identity). Let e1 , . . . , en be a basis of V . Then Aei “ λi ei with λi P kˆ .
Since A also stabilizes the line generated by ei ` ej with i ‰ j, for some λ P kˆ
be
Apei ` ej q “ λpei ` ej q ðñ λi ei ` λj ej “ λei ` λej ðñ λi “ λj “ λ
D
m
because ei , ej are linearly independent over k. Thus A “ λI, as wished.
ve
• P SLpV q ü PpV q is 2-transitive: let rvs ‰ rws, rv 1 s ‰ rw1 s be two pairs of distinct points
e2πi{3 eπi{3
No
in PpV q, represented by non-zero vectors v, w, v 1 , w1 P V ; we want to find A P SLpV q i
such that rAvs “ rv 1 s and rAws “ rw1 s. As rvs ‰ rws exactly says that v, w are linearly
independent, these vectors can be completed to a basis e1 “ v, e2 “ w, e3 , . . . , en of V .
M
Similarly, there is another basis of V with e11 “ v 1 , e12 “ w1 , e13 , . . . , e1n . Now for a P kˆ ,
ST
consider the linear transformation A P GLpV q given by
Ae1 “ a ¨ e11 and Aei “ e1i pi “ 2, . . . , n ` 1q 0 1
& ´1 ´ 12 1
2
Since det A is multiplied by λ P kˆ when we multiply a by λ, for some appropriate choice
of a P kˆ we get det A “ 1 ðñ A P SLpV q, and by construction rAvs “ rv 1 s and
T
rAws “ rw1 s. Consider the elements of SL2 pZq given by
(E
ˆ ˙ ˆ ˙
def 1 1 def 0 ´1
T “ S “
T
Example 215. Let us show that P GL2 pF3 q – S4 and P SL2 pF3 q – A4 by looking at the action 0 1 1 0
of these groups on the projective line
AF
P1F3 “ tp0 : 1q, p1 : 1q, p2 : 1q, p1 : 0qu and let G be the subgroup of SL2 pZq generated by S and T :
DR
As P GL2 pF3 q ü P1F3 is faithful by the previous theorem, there is an injective morphism def
G “ xS, T y
P GL2 pF3 q ãÑ S4 . But since (see example 86)
Then
|GL2 pF3 q| p32 ´ 1qp32 ´ 3q
|P GL2 pF3 q| “ “ “ 24 “ |S4 |
|Fˆ
3 |
3´1 (i) Given τ P H, there exists A P G such that A ¨ τ P D;
this injective morphism is also bijective, showing the first isomorphism. (ii) There are no two distinct points τ1 , τ2 P D and an element A P SL2 pZq such that A¨τ1 “ τ2 .
As a2 “ 1 for all a P Fˆ 3 , by the universal property of the quotient (theorem 154), the deter-
minant induces a surjective morphism det : P GL2 pF3 q Fˆ 3 whose kernel is exactly P SL2 pF3 q. Hence D is a set of class representatives of the orbits in the action SL2 pZq ü H.
Therefore, by the isomorphism theorem 155, P SL2 pF3 q is a subgroup of index 2 in P GL2 pF3 q.
Since A4 is the only subgroup of index 2 in S4 (example 147), we get P SL2 pF3 q – A4 , that is,
P SL2 pF3 q acts precisely by even permutations on P1F3 . For example, Before beginning the proof, note that T acts as a translation z ÞÑ z `1, while S acts as z ÞÑ ´1{z,
an inversion with respect to the circle |z| “ 1, followed by the reflection with respect to the imag-
inary axis (see example 190). The following picture shows the images of the region D under some
ˆ ˙
1 2
corresponds to the 3-cycle p0 : 1q ÞÑ p1 : 0q ÞÑ p1 : 1q ÞÑ p0 : 1q elements of G (here I2 P SL2 pZq denotes the identity matrix):
1 0
S
i
T ´1 I2 T C2 C1
Since S interchanges C1 and C2 (acting on these arcs as a reflection with respect to the imaginary
axis), if by chance T n A0 ¨ τ belonged to the “wrong arc” C1 , then ST n A0 ¨ τ would belong to
T ´1 S S TS the “right arc” C2 Ď D. This finishes the proof of (i).
To show (ii), let τ1 , τ2 P D be two points in the same orbit; without loss of generality,
=pτ1 q ď =pτ2 q. Let
ST S ST ST ´1 ST ´1 S
ˆ ˙
a b
A“ P SL2 pRq be such that A ¨ τ1 “ τ2 ,
c d
)
17
Then
=pτ1 q
20
=pτ1 q ď =pτ2 q “ =pA ¨ τ1 q “ùñ |cτ1 ` d| ď 1 p˚q
From the picture, letting G act on D we get a “tessellation” of H by “deformed triangles” (think |cτ1 ` d|2
?
of D as a “triangle” with vertices eπi{3 , e2πi{3 and a third vertex at “infinity”). As p˚q ?ùñ |c| ¨ =pτ1 q “ |=pcτ1 ` dq| ď 1 and τ1 P D ùñ =pτ1 q ě 3{2, we conclude that
9,
|c| ď 2{ 3 ùñ c “ 0 or c “ ˘1.
r2
• if c “ 0 then from det A “ 1 we get a “ d “ ˘1, τ2 “ A ¨ τ1 “ τ1 ˘ b with b P Z, i.e., τ1
Proof. To prove (i), the idea (inspired by the above tessellation) is to consider a point on the and τ2 differ by a horizontal translation. Since τ1 , τ2 P D, this is only possible if b “ 0.
be
G-orbit of τ with the largest imaginary part, then translate it horizontally by some integer n so But in that case, A “ ˘I2 and τ1 “ τ2 are not distinct;
m
that its real part lies between ´1{2 and 1{2. By relation (8) of example 190, • if c “ ˘1, p˚q ùñ |τ1 ˘ d| ď 1 with d P Z. As τ1 P D, there are two possibilities:
ve
ˆ ˙
=pτ q a b – d “ 0 and τ1 P C2 Y tiu. Still from det A “ 1 and d “ 0, b “ ć “ ¯1, hence
=pA ¨ τ q “ for A “ PG
No
|cτ ` d|2 c d τ2 “ A ¨ τ1 “ ˘a ` Spτ1 q. But Spτ1 q P C1 Y tiu, and since τ1 , τ2 P D the only
possibilities are
Therefore maximizing =pA ¨ τ q over all matrices A P G is equivalent to minimizing |cτ ` d|. To see
pa “ 0 and τ1 “ τ2 “ iq or pa “ ć “ ¯1 and τ1 “ τ2 “ e2πi{3 q
M
that such a minimum exists, note that since 1 and τ are linearly independent on R, the additive
subgroup Z ` Zτ of C generated by 1 and τ is a lattice: Again τ1 and τ2 are not distinct.
ST
– d “ ˘1 and τ1 “ e2πi{3 . Then =pτ1 q “ =pAτ1 q “ =pτ2 q, and since τ1 , τ2 P D this is
& only possible if τ1 “ τ2 .
τ
0 1
T
From the above, we suspect that G “ SL2 pZq, which in fact happens:
(E
Theorem 217. We keep the above notation.

(i) For points in D, the stabilizers of the action SL2 pZq ü H are given by
T
Since this set is discrete, there exists a minimum value |cτ ` d| among all points of the form cτ ` d
AF
• Stabpiq “ xSy “ t˘I2 , ˘Su;

with pc, dq equal to the second row of a matrix A P G. Note that |cτ ` d| ą 0 since pc, dq ‰ p0, 0q
(the determinant of a matrix in G ď SL2 pZq is equal to 1). • Stabpe2πi{3 q “ xST y “ t˘I2 , ˘ST, ˘pST q2 u;
DR
Fix A0 P G with largest =pA0 ¨ τ q. By horizontal translation, there exists n P Z such that • Stabpτ q “ t˘I2 u if τ P D and τ ‰ i, e2πi{3 ;
´1{2 ď <pT n A0 ¨ τ q ă 1{2. We claim that |T n A0 ¨ τ | ě 1 (so that T n A0 ¨ τ already lies in
Here I2 P SL2 pZq denotes the identity matrix.
the closure of D). In fact, for the sake of contradiction assume that |T n A0 ¨ τ | ă 1. Since
=pSpzqq “ =pzq{|z|2 (again by (8) in example 190, this time applied to S), composing with S we (ii) SL2 pZq “ xS, T y.
would then get
Proof. First note that S has order 4, and that ST has order 6. In particular, Í2 “ S 2 “
=pT n A0 ¨ τ q pST q3 P G “ xS, T y.
=pST n A0 ¨ τ q “ ą =pT n A0 ¨ τ q “ =pA0 ¨ τ q,
|T n A0 ¨ τ |2 (i) The computations of Stabpiq and Stabpe2πi{3 q are straightforward; let us only see the latter.
Write ω “ e2πi{3 so that ω 2 ` ω ` 1 “ 0. Then
which contradicts the choice of A0 . ˆ ˙
def a b
If |T n A0 ¨τ | ą 1 we already have T n A0 ¨τ P D. We are left to consider the case when |T n A0 ¨τ | “ 1, A “ P Stabpωq
c d
that is, the case when T n A0 ¨ τ either equals i P D or belongs to one of the two arcs of the circle
|z| “ 1 given by if and only if
aω ` b
def
C1 “ teiθ | π{3 ď θ ă π{2u and
def
C2 “ teiθ | π{2 ă θ ď 2π{3u “ ω ðñ aω ` b “ cω 2 ` dω “ pd ´ cqω ´ c ðñ a “ d ´ c and b “ ć
cω ` d
since 1 are ω are linearly independent over R. Since det A “ 1 and a, b, c, d P Z, Remark 220. Finite simple groups are “rare” in a certain sense. For example, here is the
2 2 2 2 complete list of possible orders up to 105 of a finite simple group that is not isomorphic to one
ad ´ bc “ 1 ðñ a ´ ab ` b “ 1 ðñ p2a ´ bq ` 3b “ 4 of the form Z{pZ (p prime):
# #
2a ´ b “ ˘2 2a ´ b “ ˘1 60, 168, 360, 504, 660, 1092, 2448, 2520, 3420, 4080, 5616, 6048,
ðñ or
b“0 b “ ˘1 6072, 7800, 79209828, 12180, 14880, 20160, 20160, 25308, 25920,
which gives us the 6 elements ˘I2 , ˘ST, ˘pST q2of Stabpωq. 29120, 32736, 34440, 39732, 51888, 58800, 62400, 74412, 95040
Now if τ P D with τ ‰ i, ω, by (8) of example 190, One of the great achievements of twentieth-century Mathematics was the complete classification
ˆ ˙ of all finite simple groups. The complete list consists of four families:
def a b
B “ P Stabpτ q ùñ =pB ¨ τ q “ =pτ q ðñ |cτ ` d| “ 1 (i) Z{pZ, cyclic groups of prime order p;
c d
? (ii) An , the alternating group for n ě 5;
? proof of item (ii) of the previous theorem, τ P D ùñ =pτ q ě 3{2 and
As in the
(iii) groups of Lie type (which are certain matrix groups over finite fields, approximately fol-
)
|c| ď 2{ 3, hence c “ 0 or c “ ˘1. A case analysis similar to the one in the previous
17
theorem shows that, since τ ‰ i, ω, c “ 0 is the only possibility. From |cτ ` d| “ 1 and lowing the pattern in the classification of complex Lie groups);
det B “ 1 we therefore get a “ d “ ˘1. From B ¨ τ “ τ , we conclude that b “ 0 and (iv) 26 so-called sporadic groups, since they do not fit into any of the infinite families above.
20
therefore Stabpτ q “ t˘I2 u.
To briefly illustrate this classification, we will show that An is simple if n ě 5, as well as the
9,
(ii) Given B P SL2 pZq, we want to show that B P G “ xS, T y. Fix τ “ 2i or any other point group of Lie type P SLn pkq when n ě 3 or |k| ě 4.
of D distinct from i and e2πi{3 . By the previous theorem the G-orbit of B ¨ τ intersects D
r2
exactly at τ . Thus, there exists A P G such that Lemma 221. Let n ě 5. Then
be
AB ¨ τ “ τ ðñ AB P Stabpτ q “ t˘I2 u ùñ B “ A ´1
ou ´ A ´1 (i) The 3-cycles are conjugate to each other in An .
(ii) Any σ ‰ id in An has a conjugate σ 1 ‰ σ such that σpiq “ σ 1 piq for some i.
m
Hence B P G, as desired.
Proof. (i) Let us show that any 3-cycle σ is conjugate to p123q in An . By example 74, 3-cycles
ve
are conjugate to each other in Sn , hence p123q “ πσπ ´1 for some π P Sn . If π P An we are
No
done, otherwise just replace π by p45qπ P An (remember that n ě 5):
Classification of groups and other results p45qπσπ ´1 p45q´1 “ p45qp123qp45q “ p123q
M
An important problem in Mathematics is that of classification of groups: we want to describe as (ii) In the decomposition of σ into disjoint cycles, let r be the size of the largest cycle. After
ST
explicitly as possible all groups up to isomorphism. In this section, we will look at some tools renumbering the elements 1, . . . , n, we may assume one such largest cycle to be p12 . . . rq, so
that help us in the classification of finite groups. that we may write σ “ p12 . . . rqπ where π is the product of the other cycles. Now consider
& a few cases:
Simple groups • if r ě 3, let τ “ p345q (recall that n ě 5); we may take
T
In the classification problem, if a group G has a nontrivial proper normal subgroup N Ÿ G, we def
σ 1 “ τ στ ´1 “ p124 . . . τ prqq ¨ τ πτ ´1
(E
can write a short exact sequence that “decomposes” G into two “smaller” groups N and G{N ,
potentially easier to study: Note that σ and σ 1 coincide at 1 but they are distinct: σp1q “ 2 “ σ 1 p1q but
σp2q “ 3 ‰ 4 “ σ 1 p2q.
T
AF
1 N G G{N 1 • if r “ 2 then σ is a product of transpositions. There are two subcases:

– there are at least 3 disjoint transpositions (thus n ě 6), so without loss of gen-
Such N may not exist, and in that case G behaves as an “atomic block” from the point of view
DR
erality we can write σ “ p12qp34qp56q . . .. Let τ “ p12qp35q. We can take

of group classification. This leads us to the following definition of simple groups which, in the
universe of groups, play a role similar to the one played by prime numbers in Z. def
σ 1 “ τ στ ´1 “ p12qp54qp36q . . .
Definition 218. A group G is simple if its only normal subgroups are G and 1: N Ĳ G ùñ Then σp1q “ 2 “ σ 1 p1q but σp3q “ 4 ‰ 6 “ σ 1 p3q.
N “ 1 or N “ G. – σ is the product of 2 disjoint transpositions; without loss of generality, σ “
def
p12qp34q. Let τ “ p132q, and just take σ 1 “ τ στ ´1 “ p13qp24q, so that σ 1 ‰ σ
Example 219. • Every group of prime order p is simple by Lagrange’s theorem (theo-
and σ 1 p5q “ 5 “ σp5q.
rem 52).
• If n ě 3, the symmetric group Sn is not simple because An Ĳ Sn is a proper nontrivial
normal subgroup. The group A3 – Z{3Z is simple, while A4 is not: we can write an exact
sequence (see example 142) Theorem 222. An is simple for n ě 5.
1 V A4 Z{3Z 1
Proof. The proof is by induction on n. For n “ 5, there are 5 conjugacy classes in A5 , whose
where V denotes the Klein’s four group. sizes and class representatives are given by
representative p1q p12345q p21345q p12qp34q p123q • N ď H: in this case, we will show that N stabilizes any point w0 P Pn´1 k ˘ ; as the action
conjugacy class size 1 12 12 15 20
P SLn pkq ü Pn´1
`
k is faithful by (i), we will therefore get N “ Z SLn pkq .
A normal subgroup of A5 is the union of some of the conjugacy classes above, but the only sums Since the action SLn pkq ü Pn´1
k is 2-transitive by (i), hence transitive, we can write
of the above sizes that are divisors of 60 are 1 and 60. Therefore A5 is simple. w0 “ gv0 for some g P SLn pkq. By the base change formula (lemma 193), Stabpw0 q “
Now suppose n ě 6, and let N Ĳ An be a nontrivial normal subgroup; we want to show that g Stabpv0 qg ´1 “ gHg ´1 . Therefore, as N Ĳ SL2 pkq and N ď H, we conclude that
N “ An . As 3-cycles generate An (example 84), by item (i) of the previous lemma it suffices to N “ gN g ´1 ď gHg ´1 “ Stabpw0 q, as desired.
show that N contains a 3-cycle.
• H ¨ N “ SLn pkq: in this case, we show that T ¨ N “ SLn pkq. From the isomorphism
For 1 ď i ď n, let Hi ď An be the stabilizer of i, so that Hi – An´1 . Then by induction Hi is
theorem, we will therefore get (see lemma 163)
simple. Note that it suffices to show that N X Hi ‰ 1 for some i. In fact, as N Ĳ An we have
N X Hi Ĳ Hi , and since Hi is simple we must have N X Hi “ Hi ðñ Hi ď N . But each Hi SLn pkq{N “ pT ¨ N q{N “ T {pT X N q
contains a 3-cycle, hence so does N .
Let σ P N , σ ‰ id. By item (ii) of the previous lemma, there is a conjugate σ 1 of σ such that which is an abelian group by (iii). Hence by (vi) SLn pkq{N is trivial, and thus N “ SLn pkq
σ 1 ‰ σ and σpiq “ σ 1 piq for some i. As N Ĳ An , σ 1 P N . Thus σ ´1 σ 1 ‰ id belongs to N and (if for some reason you wish to avoid using the abelianization, note that rSLn pkq, SLn pkqs
)
17
fixes i, that is, σ ´1 σ 1 P N X Hi , hence N X Hi ‰ 1, finishing the proof. has trivial image in the abelian group SLn pkq{N , that is, rSLn pkq, SLn pkqs ď N , and by
(vi) we get N “ SLn pkq).
20
Another important family of simple groups is given by the projective special linear group. We Since T Ĳ H by (iii), T ¨ N Ĳ H ¨ N “ SLn pkq. But as E12 pλq P T ¨ N for all λ P k,
will follow the elegant proof by Iwasawa [10]. from (v) we conclude that T ¨ N contains all elementary matrices, and by (iv) we get
9,
T ¨ N “ SLn pkq, as desired.
r2
Theorem 223. Let k be a field, and let n ě 2 be an integer. Then the projective special To finish the proof, it suffices to show:
be
linear group P SLn pkq is simple, with two exceptions: P SL2 pF2 q and P SL2 pF3 q. (iii) It is easy to directly check that there is an isomorphism between T and the additive group
kn´1 , given by
m
«
Proof. Let us start by listing the main ingredients of the proof: T Ñ kn´1
ve
(i) the action SLn pkq ü Pn´1 of the group SLn pkq on the projective space Pn´1
ˆ ˙
is 2-transitive, 1 v
No
k k
ÞÑ v
and the induced action P SLn pkq ü Pn´1
k is faithful (lemma 214); 0 In´1
(ii) let H ď SLn pkq be the stabilizer of v0 “ p1 : 0 : ¨ ¨ ¨ : 0q P Pn´1 : and therefore T is abelian. On the other hand, the following computation shows that
M
k
T Ĳ H:
ST
"ˆ ˙ˇ *
def a w ˇ A P GLn´1 pkq, a P kˆ ,
H “ Stabpv0 q “ n´1
ˆ ˙ ˆ ˙ ˆ ˙´1
0 A
ˇ
wPk , a ¨ det A “ 1 a w 1 v a w
¨ ¨
0 A 0 In´1 0 A
(here 0 denotes the pn ´ 1q ˆ 1 zero column vector, and w P kn´1 is regarded as a & ˆ
a w
˙ ˆ
1 v
˙ ˆ ´1
a á´1 wA´1
˙ ˆ
1 avA´1
˙
1ˆpn´1q row vector). Since the action SLn pkq ü Pn´1
k is 2-transitive by (i), by lemma 206 “ ¨ ¨ ´1 “
0 A 0 In´1 0 A 0 In´1
T
H ď SLn pkq is a maximal subgroup;
(E
(iii) let T be the subgroup of H given by (v) Given i ‰ j, it suffices to show that
"ˆ ˙ *
1 v
T
ˇ
T “ P H ˇ v P kn´1
ˇ – if i, j ‰ 2, Eij pλq and Ei2 p´λq are conjugate in SL2 pkq.
0 In´1
AF
– if i, j ‰ 1, Eij pλq and E1j p´λq are conjugate in SL2 pkq.

(In´1 P GLn´1 pkq denotes the identity matrix). Then T Ĳ H, and T is abelian;
Let e1 , . . . , en be the standard basis of kn . In the first case, consider the k-linear trans-
DR
(iv) the elementary matrices Eij pλq with i ‰ j and λ P k generate SLn pkq (lemma 91); formation T : kn Ñ kn given by
(v) the elementary matrix Eij pλq (i ‰ j) is conjugate in SLn pkq to an elementary matrix
E12 pµq P T ; T ej “ e2 , T e2 “ éj , T er “ er if r ‰ 2, j
(vi) rSLn pkq : SLn pkqs “ SLn pkq if n ě 3 or if n “ 2 and |k| ě 4 (example 94); in other words, Still denoting by T the corresponding matrix in the standard basis, we see that T equals the
the abelianization SLn pkqab of SLn pkq is trivial in these cases, and therefore all abelian permutation matrix of the transposition p2jq up to the sign of a column, thus T P SLn pkq.
quotients of SLn pkq are trivial (example 161). Then
T ´1 ¨ Eij pλq ¨ T “ Ei2 p´λq
Assuming (i)–(vi) for a second, let us see how to finish the proof. By the correspondence theo-
rem
` 150, normal subgroups of P SLn pkq correspond to normal subgroups of SLn pkq containing since both sides coincide on the standard basis (c.f. the proof of lemma 90). Similarly, for
the second case, the linear transformation S : kn Ñ kn given by
˘
Z SLn pkq , therefore we must show that
` ˘ ` ˘
Z SLn pkq ď N Ĳ SLn pkq ùñ N “ Z SLn pkq or N “ SLn pkq Sei “ e1 , Se1 “ éi , Ser “ er if r ‰ 1, i
Note that H ¨ N ď SLn pkq by lemma 138. Since H is maximal by (ii), there are two cases to is such that S ´1 ¨ Eij pλq ¨ S “ E1j p´λq.
consider:
Lie groups are differentiable manifolds that admit a differentiable group structure, i.e., the Example 225. Let p be a prime. Consider the subgroup U Tn pFp q ď GLn pFp q consisting of the
product and the inverse operations are differentiable. For example, GLn pRq is a real Lie group upper unitriangular matrices (see example 135):
of dimension n2 (as a manifold). Simple Lie groups were classified in the late nineteenth and $¨ ˛ ,
1 ˚ ˚ ¨¨¨ ˚
early twentieth centuries by Wilhelm Killing and Élie Cartan. This classification motivated the ’
’ /
/
’˚0 1 ˚ ¨ ¨ ¨ ˚‹
’ /
construction of finite simple groups of Lie type. Besides the group P SLn pkq, this list includes ’ /
/
&˚ ‹ .
˚0 0 1 ¨ ¨ ¨ ˚‹
versions of the orthogonal, symplectic and unitary groups over finite fields, as well as a few so- U Tn pFp q “ ˚ ‹ P GLn pFp q
.
.. .. .
called “exceptional” groups (such as E6 pqq, E7 pqq, E8 pqq, F4 pqq, G2 pqq), which already appear . .. ‚
’
’˚ ‹ /
/
’˝
’ /
/
in the classification of simple Lie groups over C. However, that still does not exhaust the list:
’
% /
-
0 0 0 ¨¨¨ 1
there are a few variations of these “classical groups,” such as the Steinberg, Suzuki, Ree and Tits
groups. Since each of the npn ´ 1q{2 entries ˚ can assume any value in Fp , |U Tn pFp q| “ pnpn´1q{2 . On
We now give the complete list of all 26 sporadic groups, named after their discoverers20 : the other hand, by example 86,
Name Order |GLn pFp q| “ ppn ´ 1qppn ´ pqppn ´ p2 q . . . ppn ´ pn´1 q
)
Mathieu M11 7920
“ p1`2`¨¨¨`n´1 ¨ ppn ´ 1qppn´1 ´ 1qppn´2 ´ 1q . . . pp ´ 1q
17
Mathieu M12 95040
Mathieu M22 443520 “ pnpn´1q{2 ¨ (number not divisible by p)
20
Mathieu M23 10200960
Mathieu M24 244823040 Hence U Tn pFp q is a p-Sylow of GLn pFp q.
9,
Janko J1 175560
r2
Janko J2 604800
Janko J3 50232960 Theorem 226 (Sylow). Let p be a prime, and let G be a finite group whose order is
a multiple of p, say |G| “ pe m with p - m.
be
Janko J4 86775571046077562880
Conway Co3 495766656000 (i) G contains at least one p-Sylow.
m
Conway Co2 42305421312000
Conway Co1 4157776806543360000 (ii) G contains a subgroup of order pr for all r ď e; besides, any p-subgroup of G is
ve
Fischer Fi22 64561751654400 contained in some p-Sylow.
No
Fischer Fi23 4089470473293004800 (iii) All p-Sylows of G are conjugate to each other.
Fischer Fi24’ 1255205709190661721292800
(iv) Let np be the number of p-Sylows in G. Then
Higman–Sims HS 44352000
M
McLaughlin McL 898128000 np ” 1 pmod pq and np | m
ST
Held He 4030387200
Rudvalis Ru 145926144000
Suzuki Suz 448345497600 Before we prove Sylow’s theorems, let us look at some applications.
O’Nan O’N 460815505920
& Lemma 227. Let p be a prime that divides |G|. In the notation of the above theorem, if np “ 1
Harada–Norton HN 273030912000000
T
Lyons Ly 51765179004000000 and |G| ą p then G is not simple (see definition 218).
(E
Thompson Th 90745943887872000
«
Baby Monster B 4154781481226426191177580544000000 Proof. Conjugation κg : G Ñ G by any element g P G is an automorphism of G, hence it pre-
Monster M « 8 ¨ 1053 serves the order of subgroups. Therefore the conjugate of a p-Sylow is also a p-Sylow. Thus if
T
np “ 1 then the unique p-Sylow P of G is stable under conjugation, hence P Ĳ G. If G ‰ P

AF
The largest of them, the monster group, has “only” then G is simple; on the other hand, if G “ P is a p-group of order |G| ą p, then G is not simple
246 ¨ 320 ¨ 59 ¨ 76 ¨ 112 ¨ 133 ¨ 17 ¨ 19 ¨ 23 ¨ 29 ¨ 31 ¨ 41 ¨ 47 ¨ 59 ¨ 71 by theorem 201 (ii).
DR
“ 808017424794512875886459904961710757005754368000000000 « 8 ¨ 1053 Example 228. Let G be a finite group of order |G| “ pq with p ă q two primes. Then G is not
elements! simple. In fact, by Sylow’s theorems (theorem 226) we have nq | p and nq ” 1 pmod qq. Then
nq ‰ p since from p ă q, p ı 1 pmod qq. Hence nq “ 1 and G is not simple by lemma 227.
Sylow’s theorems Example 229. We show that every group G of order 15 is cyclic, that is, that G has at least
To illustrate the use of group action in the study of the structure of finite groups, we will prove the one element of order 15. By Lagrange’s theorem (corollary 53), the order of an element of G
famous Sylow’s theorems, which provide a partial converse to Lagrange’s theorem (example 146). is a divisor of 15. An element of order 3 (respectively 5) generates a 3-Sylow (respectively a
We begin with a 5-Sylow) of G. Therefore we just have to find an element that belongs to none of the 3-Sylows
or 5-Sylows, which will then have the desired order 15. By Sylow’s theorems (theorem 226),
Definition 224. Let p be a prime number, and let G be a finite group. Let pe be the largest n3 ” 1 pmod 3q and n3 | 5, hence n3 “ 1. Similarly, n5 “ 1. Let P and Q be respectively
power of p dividing |G|, i.e., |G| “ pe m with p - m. A p-subgroup P ď G with |P | “ pe is called the unique 3-Sylow and 5-Sylow of G. Then |G r pP Y Qq| ě 15 ´ 3 ´ 5 ą 0, and thus any
a p-Sylow21 of G. g P G r pP Y Qq ‰ H will have order 15.
20 For instance, the Conway group Co2 was discovered by John Horton Conway, while the Monster M was discovered by Mr. Monster, whose infant son also discovered another sporadic group.
21 not due to any sylowgism but named after the Norwegian mathematician Peter Ludwig Mejdell Sylow
Example 230. Let p ‰ 2 be a prime. Every group G of order 2p is either cyclic or isomorphic Lemma 233. Let G be a finite group. Let H, I ď G be subgroups, and suppose that H normalizes
to the dihedral group Dp . In fact, by Sylow’s theorems (theorem 226), G has subgroups R and I. Then the set
def
S of orders p and 2, both cyclic because they have prime orders (corollary 54). Let ρ and σ be H ¨ I “ thi | h P H, i P Iu “ I ¨ H
generators of these groups: R “ xρy, S “ xσy. Since rG : Rs “ 2, we have R Ĳ G (example 136), is a subgroup of G of order
and G “ RYσR since σ R R (by Lagrange, no element of R has order 2). Therefore σρσ ´1 “ ρn |H| ¨ |I|
for some n. On the other hand, as σ 2 “ 1, conjugating σρσ ´1 “ ρn by σ we get |H ¨ I| “
|H X I|
2 2 2
σ 2 ρσ ´2 “ σρn σ ´1 “ pσρσ ´1 qn “ ρn ðñ ρ “ ρn ðñ ρn ´1
“1 As a corollary we get
2
ðñ p | n ´ 1 “ pn ´ 1qpn ` 1q Corollary 234 (Normalizing p-Sylows). Let p be a prime number, and let G be a finite group
of order divisible by p. Let P be a p-Sylow of G, and H ď G be an arbitrary p-group. If H
There are two cases:
normalizes P then H ď P .
• if p | n ` 1 then σρσ ´1 “ ρ´1 since ρp “ 1, and therefore G – Dp .
Proof. Since H and P are both p-subgroups of G, the formula in the above lemma shows that
)
• if p | n ´ 1 then from ρp “ 1 we get σρσ ´1 “ ρ ðñ σρ “ ρσ, and as G “ xρ, σy, G HP is also a p-subgroup of G. But since P is a p-Sylow and P ď HP , we must have P “ HP .
17
is abelian. Then ρσ has order 2p (see example 36), and G is cyclic (alternatively, since Thus H ď HP “ P .
all 2-Sylows are conjugate to each other by theorem 226 and G is abelian, S is its unique
20
2-Sylow; by the same token, R is the unique p-Sylow of G. And as in the previous example We still need a numerical lemma:
there are elements of order 2p).
9,
Lemma 235. Let p be a prime, and let m P N be such that p - m. Then
r2
´pe m¯
Example 231. Show that there are no simple groups of order
ı 0 pmod pq
(a) 105 “ 3 ¨ 5 ¨ 7. pe
be
for all e ě 1.
(b) 640 “ 27 ¨ 5.
m
(c) 945 “ 33 ¨ 5 ¨ 7. Proof. Let 0 ă k ă p be an integer. We have
ve
´p¯ p!
“ ”0 pmod pq
k k!pp ´ kq!
No
Solution
(a) Given a group G of order 105, by Sylow’s theorems (theorem 226) we have n3 | 5 ¨ 7 and since this fraction is an integer, and the prime factor p of the numerator cannot be “accidentally
n3 ” 1 pmod 3q, hence n3 “ 1 or n3 “ 7. By the same token, we conclude that n5 “ 1 canceled” by a factor of the denominator. Thus, looking at the polynomial p1 ` xqp mod p, we
M
or n5 “ 21, and that n7 “ 1 or n7 “ 15. If n3 “ 1, n5 “ 1 or n7 “ 1, then the unique obtain what we call “every student’s dream:”
Sylow will be normal by lemma 227, and G will not be simple. Otherwise, n3 “ 7, n5 “ 21
ST
p1 ` xqp ” 1 ` xp pmod pq
and n7 “ 15, and we get a contradiction by counting: from n3 “ 7 and the fact that two e e
distinct subgroups of order 3 only intersect at the identity element (by Lagrange, as in the By induction on e, we get p1 ` ”1` xqp xp
pmod pq. Therefore
&
“sunflower count” of example 55), we get p3 ´ 1q ¨ n3 “ 14 elements of order 3 in G. Similarly,
p1 ` xq pe m
” p1 ` x q ”
´m¯ ´m¯ e ´m¯
pe m
` xp `
e
x2p ` ¨ ¨ ¨ `
´m ¯
xmp
e
pmod pq
we obtain p5 ´ 1q ¨ n5 “ 84 elements of order 5, and p7 ´ 1q ¨ n7 “ 90 elements of order 7. 0 1 2 m
T
But 14 ` 84 ` 90 ą 105, a contradiction. `pe m˘ e e ` m ˘
Then the coefficient pe of xp in p1 ` xqp m is congruent to m “ 1 ı 0 pmod pq.
(E
(b) Let G be a group of order 640, and let S ď G be a 2-Sylow. We have an action by left trans-
lation G ü G{S of G on the set of left cosets of S, that is, we have a morphism ϕ : G Ñ S5 Proof. (of Sylow’s theorems 226)
T
since |G{S| “ 5. As |G| “ 640 ą 120 “ |S5 |, ϕ is not injective, and so ker ϕ is a nontrivial ` e ˘
(i) Let X be the family of all ppem subsets of G with exactly pe elements (yes, you read it
normal subgroup of G. Moreover, ker ϕ ‰ G since we have a nontrivial action by translation,
AF
hence ϕ is not trivial. Therefore ker ϕ is a witness of the fact that G is not simple. correctly, subsets and not just subgroups!). Let T1 , . . . , Tr P X be class representatives of
the orbits in the action G ü X by left translation (example 192). Studying this action, we
DR
(c) Let G be a group order of 945. Since n3 | 5 ¨ 7 and n3 ” 1 pmod 3q, we have n3 “ 1 or will show that StabpTi q is a p-Sylow for some i.
n3 “ 7. In the first case, by lemma 227 the unique 3-Sylow is normal, and G is not simple. First, note that 1 ď | StabpTi q| ď pe for all i. In fact, fix any t P Ti , then
In the second case, let T be the set of all 7 3-Sylows of G; by Sylow’s theorem 226(iii), the
action by conjugation G ü T is transitive, hence the associated morphism ϕ : G Ñ S7 is g P StabpTi q ðñ gTi “ Ti ùñ gt P Ti ðñ g P Ti ¨ t´1
nontrivial, and ker ϕ ‰ G. On the other hand, as 945 - |S7 | “ 7!, ϕ is not injective, hence That is, StabpTi q Ď Ti t´1 , and therefore | StabpTi q| ď |Ti t´1 | “ pe .
ker ϕ Ÿ G shows that G is not simple. On the other hand, by the class formula (corollary 197) and the previous lemma,
ÿ |G| ´p e m ¯
“ |X| “ ı 0 pmod pq
1ďiďr
| StabpTi q| pe
Let us now prove Sylow’s theorems. We will use a “relative version” of normality, given by the
following Thus, there exists i, say i “ 1, such that the i-th term in the above sum is not a multiple
of p. Since pe is the largest power of p that divides |G|, we get
Definition 232. Let H, I ď G subgroups. We say that H normalizes I if I is stable under |G|
conjugation by elements of H: κh pIq “ hIh´1 ď I for all h P H. ı0 pmod pq ùñ | StabpT1 q| ” 0 pmod pe q
| StabpT1 q|
Repeating the proofs of lemmas 138 and 163, we obtain And as 1 ď | StabpT1 q| ď pe , we must have | StabpT1 q| “ pe , and so StabpT1 q is a p-Sylow.
(ii) Let P ď G be a p-Sylow of G (whose existence is guaranteed by the previous item), and let 1 Gi Gi`1 G i`1 {Gi
loooomoooon 1
H ď G be any p-subgroup. Consider the set of all conjugates of P in G: abelian
X “ tgP g ´1 | g P Gu
In other words, X is the orbit of P under the action by conjugation (example 192). Note
that all elements of X are p-Sylows of G. Remark 237. In the above definition, each Gi is only normal in the next subgroup Gi`1 ,
in general the Gi ’s are not necessarily normal in G.
The stabilizer of P in the action by conjugation G ü X is the so-called normalizer of P
in G
def Example 238. The symmetric group Sn is solvable if n “ 1, 2, 3, 4. For n “ 3 we have
NG pP q “ tg P G | gP g ´1 “ P u
(which, of course, normalizes P !) Note that P ď NG pP q, and therefore |NG pP q| is a 1 Ÿ A3 Ÿ S3 with factors S3 {A3 – Z{2Z and A3 – Z{3Z
multiple of pe by Lagrange. Thus, by the orbit-stabilizer theorem 195
|X| “ rG : NG pP qs ı 0 pmod pq For n “ 4 we have
)
17
Now consider the action by conjugation H ü X. By the fixed point theorem for p-groups 1 Ÿ V Ÿ A4 Ÿ S 4 with factors S4 {A4 – Z{2Z and A4 {V – Z{3Z
(theorem 199), there exists Q P X which is fixed by all elements of H, i.e., H normalizes
20
the p-Sylow Q. But this implies H ď Q by corollary 234. Here, V – Z{2Z ˆ Z{2Z denotes the Klein’s four group (example 142).
Finally, it is enough to apply theorem 201 to a p-Sylow to conclude that G has subgroups
9,
of order pr for all r ď e. Example 239. The group GL2 pF3 q, of the order 48, is solvable. In fact, we have (example 215)
r2
(iii) In the proof of the previous item, if H is a p-Sylow, H is contained in some conjugate Q of Fˆ
3 – ZpSL2 pF3 qq Ĳ SL2 pF3 q Ĳ GL2 pF3 q
P . But since |H| “ |Q| “ pe , we get H “ Q.
be
(iv) Let X be the set of all p-Sylows of G. Fix P P X. By the previous item, the action by with GL2 pF3 q{SL2 pF3 q – Fˆ
3 (via the determinant) and SL2 pF3 q{ZpSL2 pF3 qq “ P SL2 pF3 q – A4
m
conjugation G ü X is transitive, therefore this set X is the same as the one in the proof (see example 215), which is solvable by the previous example.
of item (ii). By the orbit-stabilizer theorem 195,
ve
np “ |X| “ rG : StabpP qs ùñ np | |G| “ pe m Example 240 (Borel Subgroup). Let k be a field. Consider the subgroup of GLn pkq consisting
No
of upper triangular matrices (the so-called Borel subgroup):
Consider the action by conjugation P ü X. Note that by the argument of item (ii),
X P “ tP u: in fact, if P stabilizes a p-Sylow Q P X then P normalizes Q, and thus
$¨ ˛ ,
M
’ ˚ ˚ ˚ ¨¨¨ ˚ ˚ /
P ď Q ðñ P “ Q. Thus, by the fixed point theorem for p-groups 199,
’ /
’
’˚0 ˚ ˚ ¨¨¨ ˚ ˚‹ /
/
ST
’
&˚ ‹ /
.
def ˚0 0 ˚ ¨¨¨ ˚ ˚‹
np ” |X P | “ 1 pmod pq B “ ˚ ‹ P GLn pkq
’
’˚ .. .. ‹ /
/
In particular, p - np , hence from np | pe m we get np | m, as desired. . .
’
’˝ ‚ /
/
& ’
%
0 0 0 ¨¨¨ 0 ˚
/
-
T
Then B is solvable. For example, for n “ 3, we have the following chain of subgroups:
Solvable and nilpotent groups
(E
$¨ ˛, $¨ ˛,
& 1 0 ˚ . & 1 ˚ ˚ .
In this section, we will see two classes of groups, the solvable and nilpotent ones, which are in def
1 Ÿ U U2 “ 0 1 0
def
Ÿ U U1 “ 0 1 ˚‚ Ÿ B
T
˝ ‚ ˝
a sense the closest relatives of abelian groups. We have the following inclusion relation among %
0 0 1
- %
0 0 1
-
AF
these classes:
The quotient B{U U1 is isomorphic to the subgroup of GL3 pkq formed by diagonal matrices:
solvable groups
DR
$¨ ˛ ,
nilpotent groups & ˚ 0 0 .
B{U U1 – ˝ 0 ˚ 0 P GL3 pkq – kˆ ˆ kˆ ˆ kˆ
‚
abelian groups
0 0 ˚
% -
while U U2 – pk, `q, U U1 {U U2 – pk2 , `q (check!). The general case is analogous, considering
the subgroups of the upper unitriangular group U Tn pkq (see example 135)
Definition 236. A group G is called solvable if there is a chain of subgroups U Ur “ tpaij q P U Tn pkq | aij “ 0 if j ´ r ă i ă ju
1 “ G0 Ĳ G1 Ĳ G2 Ĳ ¨ ¨ ¨ Ĳ Gn “ G
Then we have a chain
where each Gi is normal in the next subgroup Gi`1 , and the consecutive factors Gi`1 {Gi are 1 “ U Un Ÿ ¨ ¨ ¨ Ÿ U U2 Ÿ U U1 Ÿ B
abelian.
with abelian quotients B{U U1 – pkˆ qn and U Ui {U Ui`1 – kní .
In other words, a solvable group is a group that is recursively built through a series of abelian
extensions: We have a “practical criterion” to decide solvability:
Definition 244. A group G is called nilpotent if there is a chain of subgroups (called a central
Theorem 241. Let G be a group. series)
(i) (n-th derivative criterion) Recursively define a sequence of subgroups Gpiq of G 1 “ A0 Ĳ A1 Ĳ A2 Ĳ ¨ ¨ ¨ Ĳ An “ G
by such that rG, Ai`1 s ď Ai for all i.
Gp0q “ G and Gpi`1q “ rGpiq , Gpiq s for i ě 0
Then G is solvable if and only if Gpnq is trivial for n " 0 large enough. Directly from the n-th derivative criterion, all nilpotent groups are solvable. Note also that
rG, Ai`1 s ď Ai ď Ai`1 implies that Ai`1 Ĳ G for all i. Then we can form the quotient G{Ai ,
(ii) Given an exact sequence of groups and condition rG, Ai`1 s ď Ai can now be reformulated as
ι π
1 N G A 1 rG{Ai , Ai`1 {Ai s “ 1 ðñ Ai`1 {Ai ď ZpG{Ai q pfor all iq
then G is solvable if and only if N and A are solvable. In particular, subgroups hence the name central series.
and quotients of solvable groups are solvable.
Example 245 (Upper unitriangular matrices). In the notation of example 135, consider
the group U Tn pkq of upper unitriangular matrices. Then the chain
)
17
Proof. (i) (ð) If Gpnq “ 1, as derived subgroups are normal, we have a chain 1 “ U Un Ÿ ¨ ¨ ¨ Ÿ U U2 Ÿ U U1 “ U Tn pkq
20
1“G pnq
ĲG pn´1q
Ĳ ¨¨¨ Ĳ G p1q
ĲG p0q
“G is a central series, and therefore U Tn pkq is nilpotent. In fact, by “Gaussian elimination” (see
example 92), U Ur is generated by the elementary matrices Eij pλq with i ď j ´ r and λ P k. We
with abelian quotients Gpiq {Gpi`1q “ pGpiq qab (see example 161). also have the following commutator identities
9,
(ñ) If G is solvable with a chain ra, bcs “ ra, bs ¨ κb pra, csq rab, cs “ κa prb, csq ¨ ra, cs
r2
1 “ G0 Ĳ G1 Ĳ G2 Ĳ ¨ ¨ ¨ Ĳ Gn “ G and we already know that U Ur Ĳ U Tn pkq for all r (example 135). Thus, in order to show that
be
having abelian factors Gi`1 {Gi , we get rU Tn pkq, U Ur s ď U Ur`1 for all r, it suffices to check that
m
rEij pλq, Est pµqs P U Ur`1 pi ă j, s ď t ´ r, λ, µ P kq
σ, τ P Gi`1 ùñ rσ, τ s P Gi
ve
which immediately follows from Steinberg’s relations (lemma 90).
In fact, the image of rσ, τ s P Gi in Gi {Gi´1 is trivial, since this quotient is abelian, hence
No
rσ, τ s P Gi´1 . Thus, Example 246 (p-groups are nilpotent). Let p be a prime. All p-groups are nilpotent. Indeed,
p1q we can build a central series
G “ rG : Gs ď Gn´1
1 “ A0 Ÿ A1 Ÿ ¨ ¨ ¨ Ÿ An´1 Ÿ An “ P
M
p2q
G “ rGp1q : Gp1q s ď rGn´1 : Gn´1 s ď Gn´2
by taking A1 “ ZpP q, which is not trivial by theorem 201. If P “ A1 , we are done; otherwise,
ST
and so on, until Gpnq ď G0 , that is, Gpnq is trivial. P {A1 is a p-group, and its center is nontrivial. By the correspondence theorem, there exists
(ii) Note that ιpN piq q ď Gpiq and πpGpiq q “ Apiq for all i, then by the criterion of the n-th A2 ď P such that 1 ‰ A2 {A1 “ ZpP {A1 q. Now repeat: if P “ A2 we are done, otherwise we
derivative, if G is solvable then N and A are solvable. Conversely, if these two groups are
& take A3 ď P such that 1 ‰ A3 {A2 “ ZpP {A2 q, and so on, until An “ P , which eventually
solvable then Apiq “ 1 and N pjq “ 1 for i " 0 and j " 0. Therefore πpGpiq q “ 1, i.e., happens since Ai`1 Ľ Ai for all i, and P is finite.
T
Gpiq ď ιpN q by the exactness of the sequence. Thus Gpi`jq ď ιpN pjq q will be trivial, which For finite groups, p-groups are essentially the only examples of nilpotent groups. More precisely,
(E
shows that G is solvable, again by the n-th derivative criterion. if P1 , P2 , . . . , Pr are respectively p1 , p2 , . . . , pr -groups (where pi are distinct primes), then it is
easy to see that the direct product
T
Corollary 242. The symmetric group Sn is not solvable for n ě 5. P1 ˆ P2 ˆ ¨ ¨ ¨ ˆ Pr

AF
Proof. If n ě 5, let a, b, c, d, e P t1, 2, . . . , nu be distinct elements, then is nilpotent. The next theorem says there are no other examples. Before we prove it, we need
two simple lemmas.
DR
pabcq “ rpecaq, pbdcqs

Lemma 247 (The normalizer grows). Let G be a nilpotent group, and let H ă G be a proper
piq
Thus the subgroups Sn always contain all 3-cycles, and therefore they are never trivial. subgroup (i.e., H ‰ G). Then the normalizer of H in G
def
A good exercise is to show (using Sylow, for example) that all groups of order strictly less than NG pHq “ tg P G | gHg ´1 “ Hu
60 are solvable, with A5 being the first non-solvable group (which incidentally is simple, as saw is such that NG pHq ą H (i.e., NG pHq properly contains H).
before).
One of the most important results in finite group theory is following theorem, which plays a Proof. Given a central series
central role in the classification of simple groups, and which we leave as an exercise for future 1 “ A0 Ĳ A1 Ĳ ¨ ¨ ¨ Ĳ An´1 Ĳ An “ G
Fields medalist candidates.
let i be the largest index such that Ai ď H; note that i ă n since H ‰ G. Then there is
a P Ai`1 r H. It is enough to show that a P NG pHq, i.e., that aHa´1 ď H, which follows from
Theorem 243 (Feit-Thompson). Every odd order group is solvable. rG, Ai`1 s ď Ai :
rh´1 , as “ h´1 aha´1 P Ai ď H ùñ aha´1 P H ph P Hq
The next class of groups is even closer to that of abelian groups.
Lemma 248. Let G be any finite group, and let P be a p-Sylow of G (for some prime p dividing References
|G|). Then
NG pNG pP qq “ NG pP q [1] Michael Artin. Algebra, Pearson, second edition.
Proof. The inclusion NG pNG pP qq Ě NG pP q is clear. To show the opposite inclusion, let [2] Herivelto Borges, Eduardo Tengan. Álgebra Comutativa em Quatro Movimentos (in Por-
g P NG pNG pP qq. Then tuguese), Projeto Euclides, IMPA.
#
gNG pP qg ´1 “ NG pP q [3] Fabio Brochero Martinez, Carlos Gustavo Tamm de Araujo Moreira, Nicolau Corção
ùñ gP g ´1 ď gNG pP qg ´1 “ NG pP q Saldanha, Eduardo Tengan. Teoria dos Números: Um Passeio com Primos e Outros
P ď NG pP q
Números Familiares Pelo Mundo Inteiro (in Portuguese), Projeto Euclides, IMPA.
Since rNG pP q : gP g ´1 s | rG : gP g ´1 s but p - rG : gP g ´1 s (gP g ´1 is a p-Sylow of G),
p - rNG pP q : gP g ´1 s, and therefore gP g ´1 is also a p-Sylow of NG pP q. But since P Ĳ NG pP q, [4] Alain Connes. A new proof of Morley’s theorem, Publications Mathématiques de l’IHÉS
the fact that all p-Sylows of NG pP q are conjugate among themselves (theorem 226) implies that S88 (1998), 43–46.
P is the unique p-Sylow of NG pP q, hence gP g ´1 “ P , i.e., g P NG pP q, as desired. [5] Keith Conrad. Expository papers, available at
)
17
http://www.math.uconn.edu/~kconrad/blurbs/
20
Theorem 249. A finite group G is nilpotent if and only if G is direct product of its
Sylow subgroups. [6] David S. Dummit, Richard M. Foote. Abstract Algebra, Wiley, third edition
9,
[7] Arnaldo Garcia, Yves Lequain, Álgebra: um Curso de Introdução (in Portuguese), Projeto
Euclides, IMPA.
r2
Proof. We have already seen that if G is a direct product of its Sylow subgroups then G is nilpo-
tent. Conversely, let G be nilpotent. First, we assert that for each prime p dividing |G|, np “ 1. [8] Allen Hatcher. Algebraic Topology, Cambridge University Press. Electronic version avail-
be
Let P ď G be a p-Sylow; since the p-Sylows are conjugate to each other (theorem 226), np “ 1 able at
is equivalent to P Ĳ G. By the previous lemmas, NG pNG pP qq “ NG pP q and therefore NG pP q is
m
not a proper subgroup: NG pP q “ G, which proves P Ĳ G. https://www.math.cornell.edu/~hatcher/AT/ATpage.html
ve
Now let [9] Israel N. Herstein. Topics in Algebra, Wiley, second edition.
|G| “ pe11 . . . perr
No
be the factorization of |G| into powers of distinct primes p1 , . . . , pr . Let P1 , . . . , Pr be the unique [10] Kenkichi Iwasawa. Über die Einfachkeit der speziellen projection Gruppen, Proc. Imperial
e
p1 -Sylow, . . . , pr -Sylow of G, so that |Pi | “ pi i . Let us show that the map Acad. Tokyo 17 (1941), 57–59.
M
« [11] Serge Lang. Algebra, Graduate Texts in Mathematics 211, Springer-Verlag.
ϕ : P1 ˆ P2 ˆ ¨ ¨ ¨ ˆ Pr Ñ G
ST
pg1 , g2 , . . . , gr q ÞÑ g1 g2 . . . gr [12] Jon Peter May. A Concise Course in Algebraic Topology, Chicago Lectures in Mathemat-
ics.
is an isomorphism.
The map ϕ is a morphism since gi P Pi commutes with gj P Pj if i ‰ j: by Lagrange, Pi XPj “ 1,
& [13] Wilhelm Magnus, Abraham Karrass, Donald Solitar. Combinatorial Group Theory, Dover
and since Pi Ĳ G, we get Books on Mathematics, second revised edition.
T
rgi , gj s “ gi ¨ pgj gi´1 gj´1 q “ pgi gj gi´1 q ¨ gj´1 P Pi X Pj ùñ rgi , gj s “ 1 [14] James S. Milne. Elliptic Curves, Booksurge Publishing. Electronic version available at
(E
We are left to prove that ker ϕ is trivial: then ϕ will be injective, and as both groups in the http://www.jmilne.org/math/Books/ectext5.pdf
domain and codomain of ϕ have the same order pe11 . . . perr , ϕ will be an isomorphism.
T
If pg1 , . . . , gr q P ker ϕ ðñ g2 . . . gr “ g1´1 , from P1 X pP2 . . . Pr q “ 1 (Lagrange and lemma 163) [15] Joseph H. Silverman and John T. Tate. Rational Points on Elliptic Curves, Undergraduate
AF
Texts in Mathematics, Springer-Verlag.

we get g2 . . . gr “ g1´1 “ 1, hence g1 “ 1. Similarly, g2 “ . . . “ gr “ 1, which finishes the
proof. [16] Elias M. Stein, Rami Shakarchi. Complex Analysis, Princeton Lectures in Analysis, No. 2.
DR

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Algebra: highlights We also define g 0 “ e and g ´n “ pg ´1 qn for n ą 0.

Some brief remarks on the above examples:

1ďrďn 1ďsďn 1ďr,sďn 1ďsďn 1ďrďn

pi,jq-th entry in ApBCq pi,jq-th entry in pABqC

p1q p2q p3q

(vi) g m ¨ g n “ g m`n and pg m qn “ g mn for all m, n P Z.

Then g n “ e for all g P G.

Solution Let G “ tx1 , x2 , . . . , xn u (with g “ xi for some 1 ď i ď n). Since λg : G ãÑ

bijection, and G is abelian,

Example 9. In a group G, an element g P G satisfies g 5 “ e; g 7 “ e. Show that g “ e. gx1 ¨ . . . ¨ gxn “ x1 ¨ . . . ¨ xn ðñ g n x1 ¨ . . . ¨ xn “ x1 ¨ . . . ¨ xn

We may repeat the above steps, conjugating "ˆ ˙ˇ *

a3 ba´3 “ ab4 a´1

Theorem 39 (Cyclic generators). Let G be a finite cyclic group of order n, generated

order 1 12 6 4 3 12 2 12 3 4 6 12 G “ xgy “ te, g, g 2 , . . . , g n´1 u

Theorem 40 (Subgroups of a cyclic group). Let G “ xgy “ te, g, g 2 , . . . , g n´1 u be a cyclic

• Σ ˝ Ξ “ id: given C ď G, let d “ ΞpCq. Then g m P C ðñ d | m: in fact, ð follows from

pCˆ qtor “ te2πir | r P Qu ď S 1

Consider the “diagonal subgroup” (orange on the board)

set of translation vectors. For example, there is a bijection def

(i) (Absorption) If h P H then h ¨ H “ H “ H ¨ h (the group H “absorbs” the element h). 2 g1

hg2 for some h P H. between the two cosets g1 H and g2 H.

Proof. We will only consider left cosets.

(ii) (ñ) Since g1 “ g1 ¨ e P g1 H “ g2 H, there is h P H such that g1 “ g2 h.

• If H ď G, the inclusion map H ãÑ G is a morphism. In particular, teu ãÑ G and

In particular, when G is finite, by Lagrange’s theorem, rG : Hs “ |G|{|H|.

(ii) If ϕ is bijective then the inverse function ϕ´1 : H ãÑ

6 Z{6Z; S3 – D3 µa P AutpZ{nZ, `q.

before the general description, given below.

4 4 then (remember that the product is the function composition)

another way of representing the permutation π:

in An . Conversely, given an odd permutation σ, τ ´1 σ is even, that is,

Sn “ xp1 2q, p1 2 3 . . . nqy

T ÞÑ det T Eij pλq ¨ Eij pµq “ Eij pλ ` µq

e2 • A ¨ Eij pλq is the matrix obtained by making the substitution cj Ð cj ` λ ¨ ci in A.

will be able to follow thanks to the proliferation of indices), let us look at an

detrA, Bs “ detpABA´1 B ´1 q “ detpAq detpBq detpAq´1 detpBq´1

• a reflection with respect to the x-axis, followed by a counterclockwise rotation of angle θ

0 if i ‰ j sin θ cos θ 0 ´1 sin θ ´ cos θ

Given g P Dn , there are two possibilities:

g “ xεi11 xεi22 ¨ ¨ ¨ xεinn “ xδj11 xδj22 ¨ ¨ ¨ xδjm

since p maps X2 to a subset of X1 . For instance,

If the first letter of p is A˘1 and the last is B ˘1 , say,

them is a continuous function f : X Ñ Y which preserves base points: f px0 q “ y0 .

X complex plane, as in example 19).

the right, starting at 0 and ending at 1{2 (after “stumbling” a bit): Ψ : Z Ñ π1 pS 1 , 1q

are inverses of each other, hence we get an isomorphism π1 pCˆ q “ πpS 1 q.

theorem. See [8] or [12] for more details. id

Brouwer’s fixed point theorem

pa2 ´ ωqpa3 ´ ωq pa1 ´ ωqpa3 ´ ωq pa1 ´ ωqpa2 ´ ωq

Let ϕ0 and ϕ1 be nontrivial elements of F with the property:

(a) ϕ0 pxq “ x if x P r1{2, 1s;

Example 134. • An Ĳ Sn since An is the kernel of the parity morphism Π : Sn Ñ t˘1u

by the conjugate relation (2) of lemma 14. $¨ ˛, $¨ ˛,

• H ¨ N is closed under product: given h1 , h2 P H and n1 , n2 P N ,

ph1 n1 q ¨ ph2 n2 q “ ph1 h2 q ¨ pκh´1 pn1 q ¨ n2 q P H ¨ N

phnq´1 “ n´1 h´1 “ h´1 ¨ κh pn´1 q P H ¨ N

p123qV p123qV p132qV V

Example 145. Let G be a group, and N Ĳ G be a normal subgroup of finite index m “ rG : N s.

Theorem 150 (Correspondence Theorem). Let G be a group, and N Ĳ G be a

hypothesis. Thus there is a map in the opposite direction

sin 2πx cos 2πx

Example 160. Complex exponentiation

|H X N | the above exact sequence implies that