Incidence monoids: automorphisms and complexity (Q1982577)

The work under review focuses on the study of the \textit{incidence monoid} \(I(P)\) of a finite poset \(P\) -- that is the monoid structure of the incidence algebra of \(P\), denoted also as \(I(P)\), induced by the product. Let \(\Bbbk\) be an algebraically closed field and \(R\) be a finite dimensional \(\Bbbk\)-algebra. Then \(G(A)\), the group of \(\Bbbk\)-algebra automorphisms of \(R\), is the subgroup of \(\operatorname{GL}(R)\) consisting of the linear transformations \(T\in \operatorname{GL}(R)\) such that \(T\) is also an automorphism for the monoid structure on \(R\) induced by the product. As a first result, the author shows that if \(P)\) is a finite poset \(P\), then any monoid automorphism of \(I(P)\) is linear: the monoid structure of \(I(P)\) determines the \(\Bbbk\)-algebra automorphisms of \(I(P)\). As the author points out, not much is known about the automorphisms group of an algebraic monoid except for the regular monoids with zero. Since in general the incidence monoid of a finite poset is not regular, the mentioned result is a step forward in the study of such automorphisms groups. After dealing with the automorphisms group of the incidence monoid \(I(P)\), the author focuses on the relationship of the geometry of \(I(P)\) (as an embedding of its units group \(G(I(P))\) and the combinatorics of \(P\). Recall that if \(M\) is an algebraic monoid, then \(G(M)\times G(M)\) acts on \(M\), with \(G(M)\) as an open orbit; if \(T\subset G(I(P))\) is a maximal torus, then \(T\times T\) acts on \(I(P)\); the author presents a formula that expresses the complexity of this action in terms of the zeta polynomial of the poset -- a combinatorial invariant related to \(P\). Finally, as an application the author provides a more detailed study of the geometry of \(I(P)\) when \(P\) is a star poset -- that is, \(P=\{x_1,\dots x_n\}\) with the order generated by \(x_1<x_i\) for \(i>1\).