Dyson's partition ranks and their multiplicative extensions (Q1743633)

The authors study the convexity of the rank function \(N(r,t;n),\) the number of partitions of \( n \) having rank congruent to \(r\) modulo \(t, \) in the case when \(t=3.\) Using analytic estimates due to \textit{K. Bringmann} [Trans. Am. Math. Soc. 361, No. 7, 3483--3500 (2009; Zbl 1189.11049)] and \textit{D.H. Lehmer} [Trans. Am. Math. Soc. 46, 362--373 (1939; Zbl 0022.20401)], the authors show that \(N(r,3;a)N(r,3;b)>N(r,3;a+b)\) for \(r=0\) (resp., \(1,2\)) and for \(a,b\ge12\) (resp., 11, 11). The authors extend the value \(N(r,3;n)\) multiplicatively to the set of partitions and, by convexity and combinatorial arguments, explicitly determine its maximum value when taken over all partitions of size \(n.\) The paper ends with a conjecture saying that \(N(r,t;a)N(r,t;b)>N(r,t;a+b)\) for any \(0\le r < t\), \(t\ge2\) and sufficiently large \(a\) and \( b\), conjecture which was meanwhile proven by \textit{J. Males} [``Asymptotic equidistribution and convexity for partition ranks'', Ramanujan J. 54, no. 2, 397--413 (2021; \url{doi:10.1007/s11139-019-00202-8})].