A characterization of quaternionic Kleinian groups in dimension 2 with complex trace fields (Q1743512)

A well known result in the theory of Kleinian groups (theorem V.G.18 of \textit{B. Maskit} [Kleinian groups. Berlin etc.: Springer-Verlag (1988; Zbl 0627.30039)]) states that if \(G\) is a nonelementary Kleinian group (subgroup of \(\mathrm{PSL}(2,\mathbb C)\)) in which \(\mathrm{tr}^2(g)\geq 0\) for all \(g\in G\), then \(G\) is Fuchsian, that is, it keeps invariant some disc in the Riemann sphere. This result has been considered in other settings by several authors, including \textit{J. Kim} [Linear Algebra Appl. 438, No. 9, 3610--3617 (2013; Zbl 1270.20056)] and the authors [Linear Algebra Appl. 455, 107--114 (2014; Zbl 1294.22008)]. In the paper under review, the authors consider the case of a subgroup \(G\) of \(\mathrm{Sp}(2,1)\) that is assumed to be nonelementary quaternionic Kleinian, containing an element that fixes \(0\) and \(\infty\). The main result of the paper shows that if the sum of diagonal entries of each element of \(G\) lies in a maximal abelian subfield of the half-space \(\mathbb H\), then the group \(G\) is conjugate to a subgroup of \(U(2,1)\) (as a Fuchsian group it is conjugate to a subgroup of \(\mathrm{SL}(2,\mathbb R)\); this result is in the spirit of the results found in Maskit's book).