Puncturing maximum rank distance codes (Q2313418)

For the vector space of \(m\times n\) matrices \(M_{m,n}({\mathbb F}_q)\), with \(m\leq n\), over a finite field \({\mathbb F}_q\) with \(q\) elements, the \textit{rank distance} between two matrices is the rank of their difference. An \([m,n,q;s]\)-rank distance (linear) code is a subset (vector subspace) \(X\subseteq M_{m,n}({\mathbb F}_q)\) such that the distance between any two of its matrices is at least \(s\). There is an analogue of the Singleton bound \(|X|\leq q^{n(m-s+1)}\), and when this bound is achieved, \(X\) is called an \([m,n,q;s]\)-maximum rank code (MRD code). These codes were introduced by \textit{Ph. Delsarte} in [J. Comb. Theory, Ser. A 25, 226--241 (1978; Zbl 0397.94012)] using as rank metric space the \(mn\)-dimensional vector space \(\Omega(V,V')\) of bilinear forms \(b:V\times V'\rightarrow {\mathbb F}_q\), where \(V,V'\) are \({\mathbb F}_q\)-vector spaces of dimensions \(m\) and \(n\), respectively. The rank metric is now the rank of the bilinear map \(b\) defined as the codimension of its left radical. For a choice of bases on \(V\) an \(V'\), the map that sends a bilinear form \(b\in\Omega(V,V')\) to its Gram matrix \(M_b\in M_{m,n}({\mathbb F}_q)\) is an isomorphism of rank metric spaces and \(\mathrm{rank}(b)=\mathrm{rank}(M_b)\). These codes were also introduced independently by \textit{È. M. Gabidulin} in [Probl. Inf. Transm. 21, 1--12 (1985; Zbl 0585.94013)] as evaluation codes of some linearized polynomials. Following the strange logic of naming mathematical objects, these codes are known as Gabidulin codes. In the paper under review, the authors study these codes using the original approach. More specifically, the authors consider punctured MRD-codes: for any given matrix \(A\in M_{m,n}({\mathbb F}_q)\) of rank \(m<n\) and a rank distance code \(X\subseteq M_{m,n}({\mathbb F}_q)\), the set \(AX=\{AM:M\in X\}\) is a rank distance code said to be obtained by puncturing \(X\) with \(A\). In Theorem 3.2, the authors prove that every punctured \([m,n,q;s]\)-code by a rank \(m\) matrix is an \([m,n,q;s+m-n]\)-MRD code. In Theorem 3.4, they prove that every punctured generalized Gabidulin code is also a generalized Gabidulin code and every generalized Gabidulin code can be obtained by puncturing a generalized Gabidulin code. For the main results, the authors construct an infinite family of MRD linear codes obtained by puncturing generalized twisted Gabidulin codes introduced by \textit{J. Sheekey} in [Adv. Math. Commun. 10, No. 3, 475--488 (2016; Zbl 1348.94087)] for \(m<n\). In Theorem 5.2, they calculate explicitly the automorphism group of these punctured generalized twisted Gabidulin codes. As a consequence, they show in Theorem 5.5 that this family of punctured generalized Gabidulin codes contains elements that are not equivalent to a generalized twisted Gabidulin code, solving in the negative a question raised by Sheekey in [loc. cit].