Separating invariants of finite groups (Q2636359)

Let \(G\) be a finite group and let \(X\) be a not necessarily irreducible affine variety defined over an algebraically closed field \(K\). The main purpose of this article is to investigate the separating invariants of an algebraic action \(G\times X\rightarrow X\). Two important notions that play fundamental roles in the paper are the ``\(k\)-reflections'' and the ``separating sets.'' Let us introduce the latter notion first: A subset \(S\) of the ring of invariants \(K[X]^G\) is called separating if for all \(x,y\in X\) the following implication holds true: if \(f(x) \neq f(y)\) for some \(f\in K[X]^G\), then there exists \(g\in S\) such that \(g(x) \neq g(y)\). The infimum of the set of cardinalities of separating subsets is denoted by \(\gamma_{\text{sep}}\). An element \(\sigma \in G\) is called a \(k\)-reflection if the codimension of its fixed space, \(X^\sigma\) in \(X\), is at most \(k\). Finally, a reflection is a 1-reflection. The main results of the article are as follows: {\parindent=0.7cm\begin{itemize}\item[1.] Theorem 2.4: Let \(X\) be a connected Cohen-Macaulay affine \(G\)-variety with \(\gamma_{\text{sep}}=n\). If \(G\) is generated by elements having a fixed point, then \(G\) is generated by reflections. \item[2.] Theorem 2.8: Let \(L\) be a lattice on which \(G\) acts by automorphisms. If the ring of invariants \(K[L]^G\) is isomorphic to a mixed Laurent polynomial ring then \(G\) is generated by reflections. Here, a mixed Laurent polynomial ring is a ring of the form \(K[x_1^{\pm 1},\dots, x_k^{\pm 1},x_{k+1},\dots, x_n]\) for some algebraically independent variables \(x_1,\dots,x_n\). \item[3.] Theorem 3.13: Let \(X\) be a connected normal affine \(G\)-variety such that \(X^G\neq \emptyset\). If there exists a finitely generated `separating subalgebra' \(A\subset K[X]^G\) such that \(K[X]^G\) is a finite \(A\)-module, and that \(A\) is a complete intersection in codimension \(2+\text{cid}(A)\), where \(\text{cid}(A)\) denotes the `complete intersection defect of \(A\)', then \(G\) is generated by 2-reflections. \item[4.] Theorem 4.5: Let \(X\) be a connected normal affine \(G\)-variety, where \(G\) is generated by elements having a fixed point in \(X\). If \(X\) is \(n\)-dimensional and \(\gamma_{\text{sep}} = n+k-1\), then \(G\) is generated by \(k\)-reflections. \end{itemize}}