Homological stability of series of groups. (Q968604)

Here the authors define the stability of a subgroup under a class of maps, and establish its basic properties. Loosely speaking, they say that a function \(\Gamma\) that assigns to each group \(A\) a normal subgroup \(\Gamma(A)\triangleleft A\) is stable under a class of maps \(\mathfrak J\) if whenever \(f\colon A\to B\) lies in \(\mathfrak J\) then \(f\) induces a monomorphism \(A/\Gamma(A)\mapsto B/\Gamma(B)\). The stabilization \(\Gamma_S\), of \(\Gamma\) under \(\mathfrak J\) is the function assigning the ``smallest'' normal subgroup that contains \(\Gamma(A)\) and has the property that each \(f\in\mathfrak J\) induces a monomorphism \(A/\Gamma_S(A)\mapsto B/\Gamma_S(B)\). The authors are motivated by the general question, What subgroups of a group are unchanged, or stable, under homology equivalences? The model theorem in this regard is the result of Stallings. \textit{J. Stallings}'s integral theorem [J. Algebra 2, 170-181 (1965; Zbl 0135.05201)]. Suppose \(f\colon A\to B\) is a group homomorphism that induces an isomorphism on \(H_1(\cdot;\mathbb Z)\) and an epimorphism on \(H_2(\cdot;\mathbb Z)\). Then for each \(n\), \(f\) induces an isomorphism \(A/A_n\cong B/B_n\). Therefore \(a\in A_n\) if and only if \(f(a)\in B_n\). This theorem implies that each term of the lower central series is stable under the set of \(\mathbb Z\)-homologically 2-connected maps. Stallings had analogous theorems [in loc. cit.] for \(\mathbb Q\) and \(\mathbb Z_p\) that involved different series-variations of the lower-central series. \textit{W. G. Dwyer} [in J. Pure Appl. Algebra 6, 177-190 (1975; Zbl 0338.20057)] improved on Stallings' theorem by weakening the hypothesis on \(H_2\), and finding the precise class of maps \(f\) that, for a fixed \(n\), yield isomorphisms modulo the \(n\)-th term of the lower central series. This was placed in a larger context by \textit{A. K. Bousfield} [Mem. Am. Math. Soc. 186 (1977; Zbl 0364.20058)]. More recently, the authors found analogues of the theorems of Stallings and Dwyer for the derived series [\textit{T. Cochran} and \textit{S. Harvey}, Geom. Topol. 9, 2159-2191 (2005; Zbl 1138.20043)]. However, to do so it was necessary to expand the derived series and use a larger series, the torsion-free-derived series, introduced by \textit{S. L. Harvey} [in Geom. Topol. 12, No.~1, 387-430 (2008; Zbl 1157.57006)]. Here the authors interpret all of the theorems above in the framework of stability.