New upper bounds for the sizes of caps in finite projective spaces (Q1610991)

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New upper bounds for the sizes of caps in finite projective spaces
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    New upper bounds for the sizes of caps in finite projective spaces (English)
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    15 September 2002
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    The authors obtain in this article improved upper bounds for the sizes of caps in finite projective spaces. Let \(m_{2}(N,q)\) be the size of a maximal cap in \(PG(N,q)\). After proving that large caps can be uniquely extended to complete ones, they improve the upper bound of \textit{G. P. Nagy} and \textit{T. Szönyi} [J. Geom. 59, 103-113 (1997; Zbl 0884.51009)] for \(m_{2}(4,q)\), \(q\) odd. An improvement of the Hill formula relating \(m_{2}(N,q)\) and \(m_{2}(N-1,q)\) is then obtained, using the cardinalities of the intersection of a cap with two given subspaces of \(PG(N,q)\) and known bounds for \(m_{2}(N,q)\). This ameliorated inductive relation is used to improve the upper bounds on \(m_{2}(N,q)\), \(N>4\), \(q\) odd. The last section is devoted to the case \(q\) even, a new upper bound for \(m_{2}(N,q)\) (\(N>4\)) being found using some arguments developed by \textit{J. W. P. Hirschfeld} and \textit{J. A. Thas} [Geom. Dedicata 23, 15-31 (1987; Zbl 0616.51008), General Galois Geometries (Oxford Mathematical Monographs, Clarendon Press, Oxford) (1991; Zbl 0789.51001)] and without use of Hill's formula.
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    caps
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    projective spaces
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    \(n\)-arcs
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