Picard groups of multiplicative invariants (Q1379587)

Let \(S=kA\) be the group algebra of a finitely generated free abelian group \(A\) over the field \(k\), and \(G\) a finite subgroup of \(\text{GL}(A)\). Then \(G\) acts on \(S\) by means of the \(k\)-linear extension of the natural action on \(A\). The author shows that the Picard group \(\text{Pic} R\) of the algebra of invariants \(R=S^G\) measures the extent to which the 1-cohomology \(H^1(G,A)\) fails to be detected by the cyclic subgroups of \(G\), and gives new polycyclic group algebras with nontrivial torsion in \(K_0\).