On reflection length in reflection groups (Q1818242): Difference between revisions

Let \(W\) be a finite Coxeter group acting as a reflection group on the Euclidean space \(V\). The reflection length \(n(w)\) of an element \(w\in W\) is the minimal integer \(n\) such that \(w=r_1r_2\cdots r_n\), where the \(r_i\) are reflections in \(W\). Let \(\Phi\) be the root system of \(W\) in \(V\) with \(\Pi\) a chosen base of \(\Phi\). Let \(\sigma\) be an orthogonal transformation of \(V\) such that \(\sigma\Pi=\Pi\). Then the main result of the paper is to show that, for any \(w\in W\), the following conditions are equivalent: (1) \(\dim(\text{im}(1-\sigma w))\) is minimal. (2) There is an element \(x\in W\) such that \(\sigma w=x^{-1}\sigma x\). (3) \(\sigma w\) stabilizes some simple system in \(\Phi\). Let \(W\) be the Weyl group of a connected reductive group \(G\) over a finite field. Suppose \(W_1\) is any parabolic subgroup of \(W\). Let \(w\) be an element of the normalizer in \(W\) of \(W_1\). Then as an application of the above result, the paper shows that any two elements of the coset \(wW_1\) which have minimal reflection length in the coset are \(W_1\)-conjugate. The latter is a consequence of the Borel-Tits rational conjugacy theorem [see \textit{A. Borel} and \textit{J. Tits}, Publ. Math., Inst. Hautes Étud. Sci. 27, 659-755 (1965; Zbl 0145.17402)].