From examples to methods: Two cases from the study of units in integral group rings (Q2065332)

In the paper under review, the authors revisit the proofs of the first Zassenhaus Conjecture on conjugacy of torsion units in integral group rings for the alternating groups of degree \(5\) and \(6\) given by \textit{I. S. Luthar} and \textit{I. B. S. Passi} [Proc. Indian Acad. Sci., Math. Sci. 99, No. 1, 1--5 (1989; Zbl 0678.16008)] and \textit{M. Hertweck} [Proc. Indian Acad. Sci., Math. Sci. 118, No. 2, 189--195 (2008; Zbl 1149.16027)], respectively. Precisely, this conjecture states the following: Let \(G\) be a finite group. Then any unit of finite order in the unit group \(U(\mathbb{Z}G)\) of the integral group ring \(\mathbb{Z}G\) is conjugate in the rational group algebra \(\mathbb{Q}G\) to a trivial unit of \(\mathbb{Z}G\). They also describe how the study of these examples led to the development of two methods, namely, the HeLP method and the lattice method. Specifically, they exhibit these methods explicitly and summarize some results which are achieved using them. After that they apply these ideas to the study of the first Zassenhaus Conjecture for the alternating group of degree \(7\), where only one critical case remains still open for a full answer. Along the way, the authors show in a series of examples how the recently obtained results can be combined with the methods presented here, and also collect a few open problems, some of which could be attacked successfully using these methods. The paper is systematically well organized and written.