Automorphisms group of generalized Fermat curves of type \((k, 3)\) (Q392118)

Let \(S\) be a closed Riemann surface of genus \(g\geq 2\). We denote by \(\Aut(S)\) the full group of conformal automorphismus of \(S\). A. Hurwitz showed that \(|\Aut(S)|\leq 84(g-1)\), and it is known that the upper bound is sharp. Many authors spent a lot of energy to describe the closed Riemann surfaces \(S\) with \(|\Aut(S)|= 84(g-1)\), and we are still for away from a classification and especially from a classificatin of the finite groups with an order \(84(g-1)\) which can occur as on \(\Aut(S)\) for some closed Riemann surfaces \(S\). This describes already the major problems which are to describe all groups which occur as an \(\Aut(S)\) and to determine \(\Aut(S)\) for a given single \(S\). The latter problem is relatively easy if the surface \(S\) is hyperelliptic or a classical Fermat curve. In this paper the authors consider a certain family of closed non-hyperelliptic Riemann surfaces, called generalized Fermat curves of type \((k,n)\) with \(n\geq 1\), \(k\geq 2\) integers. Such a surface \(S\) admits a group \(H< \Aut(S)\) with \(H\cong\mathbb{Z}^n_k\) such that \(S/H\) is an orbifold with signature \((0,n+ 1,k,\dots, k)\), that is, of genus \(0\) and with \(n+1\) cone points, each one of order \(k\). The main result is as follows: \(\Aut S\) of a generalized Fermat curve \(S\) of type \((k,3)\), \(k\geq 3\), admits a unique subgroup \(H\cong\mathbb{Z}^3_k\). In particular, \(H\) is a normal subgroup of \(\Aut S\), and \(\Aut S\) can be explicitely computed. This result has some interesting consequences, some of them are described in a more group-theoretic manner and some of them in a more geometric manner.