The Deskins index complex and the solvability of finite groups (Q1307043)

The paper presents more contributions to the study of the influence of the maximal subgroups on the structure of a finite group by using the concept of completion due to Deskins. A subgroup \(C\) of a group \(G\) is said to be a completion for a maximal subgroup \(M\) of \(G\) if \(C\) is not contained in \(M\) while every proper subgroup of \(C\) which is normal in \(G\) is contained in \(M\). It is clear then that the subgroup generated by all proper subgroups of \(C\) which are normal in \(G\), denoted by \(K(C)\), is a proper subgroup of \(C\) contained in \(M\). The authors prove some extensions of earlier results of Guo and the reviewer and Deskins and also obtain some new ones. Here are two theorems contained in the paper. The first one is an improvement of a known result of the second author. Theorem. Let \(G\) be a finite group. Assume that every maximal subgroup of composite index has a maximal completion \(C\) with \(C/K(C)\) cyclic and \(G=CM\). Then \(G\) is either supersoluble or has a quotient isomorphic to \(S_4\), the symmetric group of degree 4. If nilpotence is assumed on maximal completions of one maximal subgroup, the following holds. Theorem. A finite group \(G\) is soluble if and only if there exists a soluble maximal subgroup \(M\) of \(G\) such that \(M\) has a maximal completion \(C\) with \(C/K(C)\) nilpotent with Sylow 2-subgroups of class at most 2.