Finite-dimensional representations of PI algebras. II (Q1895589)

[For part I cf. ibid. 133, No. 2, 244-248 (1990; Zbl 0725.16018).] The authors prove that if \(R\) is a subalgebra in an affine PI-algebra over a field \(k\) and \(N(R)\) the nil radical such that \(R/N(R)\) is artinian then \(R/N(R)\) is a finite-dimensional \(k\)-algebra. Another result is that a finitely generated right \(A\)-module \(M_A\) over a left noetherian affine PI-algebra \(A\) over a field \(k\) either has infinitely many nonisomorphic simple images or is a finite-dimensional \(k\)-space. These results are applied to studying the number of pairwise nonequivalent irreducible representations of finitely generated groups and to finitely generated linear groups. In the latter situation the authors prove that if \(G\) is a f.g. linear group over a field \(K\) of characteristic 0 and \(H\) is a subgroup such that \(\{\chi(h)\mid h\in H\}\subset k\), \(k\) a subfield of \(K\), then there exists a unipotent normal subgroup \(N\subset H\) such that \(H/N\) is a linear subgroup over \(k\). A special case of this is due to E. B. Vinberg, 1971.