Full embeddings of \((\alpha,\beta)\)-geometries in projective spaces (Q1864578)

A partial linear space of order \((s,t)\) is a connected incidence structure such that two points are on at most one line, each line carries \(s+1\) points and through each point run \(t+1\) lines (\(s,t\geq 1\)). Such a space is called \((\alpha,\beta)\)-geometry (\(\alpha,\beta\geq 0\)) if for each non incident point-line-pair \((x,L)\) the number of points on \(L\) collinear with \(x\) is either \(\alpha\) or \(\beta\). An \((\alpha,\beta)\)-geometry is called proper if \(0<\alpha<\beta\). It is called fully embedded in \(\operatorname {PG}(n,q)\) if the point set (line set) is a subset of the point set (line set) of \(\operatorname {PG}(n,q)\) with inherited incidence relation, \(s=q\), and the points span \(\operatorname {PG}(n,q)\). Assume a proper \((\alpha,\beta)\)-geometry \(S\) is fully embedded in a projective space. A plane is called a \(\gamma\)-plane, \(\gamma>1\), if it contains a non incident point-line-pair and the restriction to \(S\) is a partial geometry pg\((s,\gamma-1,\gamma)\). The only possible cases are \(\gamma\in\{\alpha,\beta\}\). The authors prove: (1) There is no proper \((1,\beta)\)-geometry fully embedded in \(\operatorname {PG}(3,q)\) if there is at least one \(\beta\)-plane and at least one plane such that all lines of \(S\) in that plane intersect in a single point. (2) Assume that \(q\) is odd, and \(S\) is a proper \((q,q+1)\)-geometry fully embedded in \(\operatorname {PG}(n,q)\). If every plane containing a non incident point-line-pair is a \(q\)-plane or a \(q+1\)-plane, then the point set of \(S\) is \(\operatorname {PG}(n,q)\setminus\operatorname {PG}(m,q)\) for some \(0\leq m< n-2\), while the line set consists of the lines disjoint from \(\operatorname {PG}(m,q)\). A similar theorem for \(\alpha>1\) is proved, as well.