Classification of balanced toral elements of exceptional Lie algebras (Q1727717)

Let \(\mathfrak{g}\) be a simple Lie algebra of exceptional type \(G_2\), \(F_4\), \(E_6\), \(E_7\), or \(E_8\) over an algebraically closed field of prime characteristic \(p\). An element \(h\) of \(\mathfrak{g}\) is called toral if \(h^{[p]}=h\), where \((-)^{[p]}\) denotes the \(p\)-mapping of \(\mathfrak{g}\). A toral element \(h\) is said to be balanced if the eigenspaces \(\{x\in\mathfrak{g}\mid[h,x]=ix\}\) of \(\mathrm{ad}_\mathfrak{g}\, h\) associated to non-zero eigenvalues \(i\) all have the same dimension. Finally, a balanced toral element is called \(d\)-balanced if this common dimension is divisible by \(d\) for some positive integer \(d\). Under the hypothesis that \(p\) is a good prime for the root system of \(\mathfrak{g}\), \textit{A. Premet} [Adv. Math. 311, 833--884 (2017; Zbl 1421.17002)] determined the \(G\)-orbits of non-zero \(p\)-balanced toral elements for the adjoint action of \(G\) on \(\mathfrak{g}\). In the paper under review Premet's result is generalized to arbitrary non-zero balanced toral elements and not necessarily good primes. Since in characteristics 2 and 3 every toral element is balanced, the only non-trivial bad prime to be considered is \(p=5\) for the root system of \(E_8\). The description of \(G\)-orbits of balanced toral elements is given in terms of Kac coordinates which were already used as a tool by Premet for obtaining his result. The latter are sequences of non-negative integers that were introduced by Kac to classify finite order automorphisms of a simple Lie algebra in characteristic zero. It is clear that two elements of \(\mathfrak{g}\) belonging to the same \(G\)-orbit have isomorphic centralizers. The author proves a partial converse of this statement for balanced toral elements. Namely, for two balanced toral elements \(h\) and \(h^\prime\) with isomorphic centralizers there exists a non-zero element \(r\) in the prime field \(\mathbb{F}_p\) such that \(rh\) is conjugate to \(h^\prime\) for some automorphism of \(\mathfrak{g}\). Let \(G_\mathbb{C}\) be a complex simple algebraic group with Lie algebra \(\mathfrak{g}_\mathbb{C}\), let \(\sigma\) be an automorphism of \(\mathfrak{g}_\mathbb{C}\) of prime order \(p\), and fix a primitive \(p\)-th root of unity \(\xi\). Then the eigenvalues of \(\sigma\) on \(\mathfrak{g}_\mathbb{C}\) are contained in \(\{\xi^i\mid i\in\mathbb{F}_p\}\), and \(\sigma\) is said to be balanced if all the eigenspaces of \(\sigma\) on \(\mathfrak{g}_\mathbb{C}\) have the same dimension. The author obtains a result similar to her result on \(G\)-orbits of balanced toral elements: 1) the \(G_\mathbb{C}\)-orbits of balanced automorphisms of \(\mathfrak{g}_\mathbb{C}\) of prime order can be classified by Kac coordinates, and 2) for two balanced automorphisms \(\sigma\) and \(\sigma^\prime\) of \(\mathfrak{g}_\mathbb{C}\) of prime order \(p\) with \(G_\mathbb{C}\)-conjugate fixed points subalgebras there exists a non-zero element \(r\) in \(\mathbb{F}_p\) such that \(\sigma^r\) is conjugate to \(\sigma^\prime\) for some automorphism of \(\mathfrak{g}_\mathbb{C}\).