Overgroup lattices in finite groups of Lie type containing a parabolic. (Q2437440)

The following problem is still open: is each finite lattice isomorphic to the lattice \(\mathcal O_G(H)\) of overgroups of some subgroup \(H\) in a finite group \(G\)? The main theorem of this paper is a step in a program to show that the answer is negative. For a finite lattice \(\Lambda\), let \(\Lambda'\) be the poset obtained by removing the minimum and maximum elements of \(\Lambda\) and, for \(n\in\mathbb N\), let \(\Delta(n)\) be the lattice of all subsets of \(\{1,\ldots,n\}\), ordered by inclusion. A lattice \(\Lambda\) is a \(D\Delta\)-lattice if \(\Lambda\) is disconnected and \(\Lambda'\) has connected components \(\Lambda_i\), \(1\leq i\leq k\), such that \(\Lambda_i\cong\Delta(m_i)'\) for some \(m_i\geq 3\). Shareshian and the author conjectured that \(D\Delta\)-lattices are not overgroup lattices in any finite group. In two previous papers the author obtained a reduction of this conjecture to two problems about almost simple groups. The first is to show that if \(G\) is an almost simple finite group and \(H\leq G\) then \(\mathcal O_G(H)\) is not a \(D\Delta\)-lattice. The second is to show that a lower signalizer lattice in an almost simple finite group is not a \(D\Delta\)-lattice. Both problems have been solved when \(G\) is an alternating or symmetric group. The present paper is a first step to deal with the first question when the socle of \(G\) is a group of Lie type: it seems reasonable to approach this question by successively eliminating the possibility that the set of maximal overgroups of \(H\) in \(G\) contains a member of each of the various collections of maximal subgroups of \(G\). The largest subgroups of \(G\) are its parabolics. The main theorem shows \(H\) cannot have an overgroup in that collection. As a part of the proof, the author proves a theorem on the structure of maximal parabolics in finite groups of Lie type which is of independent interest.