A criterion for an element to belong to a given Sylow p-subgroup. II (Q1120670)

This paper provides a contribution to Conjecture: Let p be a prime, let G be a finite group and let P be a Sylow p-subgroup of G. If \(g\in G\) is such that \(<g,x>\) is a p-group for all \(x\in P\), then \(g\in P\). - This conjecture has been verified for all \(p>7\) [in Part I (to appear)]. Consequently only the cases \(p=5\) or 7 need to be considered in the main result of this paper. Theorem: If \(p\geq 5\), then the conjecture holds except possibly when \(p=7\) and G involves a simple group of type \(F_ 1\). The proof of this Theorem examines a minimal counterexample \(G=F^*(G)<g>\) where \(F^*(G)\) is simple and \(G=<P,g>\). The result follows from a study of the simple groups when \(p=5\) or 7.