Derangements in permutation groups with two orbits

DOI10.1017/S0004972725100695MaRDI QIDQ7285729zbMATH OpenFDO

Authors Melissa Lee, Tomasz Popiel, Gabriel Verret

Publication date 22 June 2026

Published in Bulletin of the Australian Mathematical Society (Search for Journal in Brave)

Copyright license Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International

Full work available at URL https://doi.org/10.1017/S0004972725100695

Mathematics Subject Classification ID

Characterization theorems for permutation groups (20B10)

Review text

Let \(G\) be a finite permutation group on a set \(\Omega\). A theorem of Jordan states that if \(G\) is transitive on \(\Omega\) and \(|\Omega| \geq 2\), then \(G\) contains a derangement, a permutation which has no fixed point. If \(G\) has exactly two orbits on \(\Omega\), then there need not be a derangement in \(G\).\N\NEllis and Harper conjectured [\textit{D. Ellis} and \textit{S. Harper}, ``Orbits of permutation groups with no derangements, Preprint, \url{arXiv:2408.16064}, Conjecture 2] that if \(G\) has exactly two orbits on \(\Omega\) and both orbits have size \(n \geq 2\), then \(G\) contains a derangement. They have established this statement in several cases.\N\NIn the present paper, the authors prove the Ellis-Harper conjecture when \(n\) is a product of two primes, when \(n \leq 30\) and when \(n = bp\) with \(p\) a prime and \(2b \leq p\).\N\NThe arguments are short and mostly combinatorial in nature. For \(n \leq 30\), the proof is computational.

Cites work

• Classical Groups, Derangements and Primes
• Constructing transitive permutation groups.
• On a theorem of Jordan
• Orbits of Sylow subgroups of finite permutation groups
• Research on substitutions.
• The Magma algebra system. I: The user language
• Theory of groups of finite order.

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