Invariants of finite groups and involutive division (Q2760199)

This paper reports about some experimental work on using involutive bases for dealing with invariant rings of finite groups. The authors give a brief introduction into invariant theory of finite groups and then explain how involutive bases can be used to determine a presentation of the invariant ring (or a subring). Involutive bases are particularly useful for computing Hilbert series. By comparing the Hilbert series of a subring of the invariant ring to the Hilbert series of the invariant ring itself (calculated by Molien's formula), one can decide whether one already has the full invariant ring. The ideas are illustrated by a number of examples. The first author has implemented the Janet algorithm for computing involutive bases in the computer algebra system MAPLE. For the entire collection see [Zbl 0970.00027].