Constructive recognition of classical groups in even characteristic. (Q2438023)

This paper is part of the constructive recognition program for linear groups (see, for example, [\textit{E. A. O'Brien}, Lond. Math. Soc. Lect. Note Ser. 388, 297-323 (2011; Zbl 1237.20002)]). Let \(G\leq\mathrm{GL}(d,q)\) be one of the classical subgroups (\(\mathrm{SL}(d,q)\), \(\mathrm{Sp}(d,q)\), \(\mathrm{SU}(d,q^2)\) or \(\Omega^\pm(d,q)\)) and let \(X\) be an arbitrary set of generators of \(G\). For each of the classical groups there is a standard set of generators consisting of at most \(7\) elements and the authors are interested in computing these generators from \(X\). The case of odd characterisitic was dealt with by \textit{C. R. Leedham-Green} and \textit{E. A. O'Brien} [in J. Algebra 322, No. 3, 833-881 (2009; Zbl 1181.20044)] so in this paper \(q\) is assumed to be even. It is then proved that there is a Las Vegas algorithm which constructs the standard generators for \(G\) as straight line programs with a bound on the computational complexity depending linearly on the cost of generating random elements of \(G\) and the cost of finding discrete logarithms in the appropriate field and depending polynomially on \(d\) and \(\log q\). A principal step in the algorithm is to reduce the degree of the group considered by constructing an involution \(u\in G\) such that the rank of \(u-1\) is close to \(d/2\).