Embedding 2-groups in groups generated by involutions

In this paper the author proves that given a finite 2-group or pro-2-group \(H\) that is 2-generated, i.e., generated by two elements, there is at most one group \(G\) into which \(H\) embeds with index 2 such that \(G\) is generated by the involutions, i.e., elements of order 2, outside \(H\). This group theoretical result has an immediate application to number theory, from which the problem originally arose: let \(K\) be a quadratic number field and \(L/K\) an unramified 2-extension, Galois over \(\mathbb Q\) (the rational field), with Gal\((L/K)\) 2-generated. Then the structure of Gal\((L/K)\) determines that of Gal\((L/\mathbb Q)\). The above group-theoretical result is proved by viewing \(G\) as a semidirect product of \(H\) by some element \(y\) in \(\Aut(H)\) of order 2, which leads to an investigation of \(x_y=\{h \in H\mid h^y=h^{-1}\}\), and an immediate corollary that if \(x_y\) generates \(H\) then its image in \(\Aut(H/H')\), where \(H\) is the commutator subgroup of \(H\), is the automorphism of \(H/H'\) that inverts every element. The proof is completed by considering free pro-2-groups on two generators, and both the inner and outer automorphisms of \(H\). The author further considers the question of whether for \(K\) quadratic and general 2-extensions \(L/K\) the structure of Gal\((L/K)\) determines that of Gal\((L/\mathbb Q)\). This question is answered in the affirmative for Gal\((L/K)\) isomorphic to a particular 3-generated group of order 32, though the conclusion of Theorem 3 that describes this result should refer to Gal\((L/\mathbb Q)\) (in place of Gal\((L/K))\) in reference to the resulting group of order 64.

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