Wild automorphisms of free metabelian algebras. (Q392367)

Let \(A_n=k\langle x_1,\ldots,x_n\rangle\) be the free associative algebra of rank \(n\) over a field \(k\) of characteristic 0. One can associate two Jacobian matrices to every endomorphism \(\varphi\) of \(A_n\). The first one \(J_l(\varphi)\) (or \(J_r(\varphi)\)) involves the left (or right) Fox derivatives of \(\varphi(x_i)\), i.e., the coordinates of the nonconstant component of \(\varphi(x_i)\) in the augmentation ideal of \(A_n\) considered as a free left (or right) \(A_n\)-module with basis \(\{x_1,\ldots,x_n\}\). The second one \(J(\varphi)\) is more refined and takes into account the derivatives which are in the tensor product \(A_n\otimes_kA_n'\) of the algebra \(A_n\) and its opposite algebra \(A_n'\). An old result ([\textit{W. Dicks} and \textit{J. Lewin}, Commun. Algebra 10, 1285-1306 (1982; Zbl 0493.16005)] for \(n=2\) and [\textit{A. H. Schofield}, Representation of rings over skew fields. Lond. Math. Soc. Lect. Note Ser. 92. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press (1985; Zbl 0571.16001)] for the general case of any \(n\)) gives that an endomorphism \(\varphi\) of \(A_n\) is an automorphism if and only if \(J(\varphi)\) is invertible. In [\textit{R. M. Bryant} et al., Commun. Algebra 18, No. 11, 3619-3631 (1990; Zbl 0722.20017)] the authors found a criterium for the non-invertibility of an endomorphism of the free group, modified in [\textit{R. M. Bryant} and \textit{V. Drensky}, Commun. Algebra 21, No. 12, 4361-4389 (1993; Zbl 0797.16032)] for endomorphisms of the free associative algebra. The criterium was based on the equivalence induced by the cyclic permutation of the monomials in the free group and in \(A_n\). In the paper under review the author introduces a similar criterium which counts the cyclic permutation of the monomials in \(A_n\otimes_kA_n'\). This is applied to show that classes of endomorphisms of \(k\langle x,y,z\rangle\) and of \(A_n\), \(n\geq 3\), are not automorphisms. As a corollary, the author establishes the wildness of some automorphisms of the free metabelian algebra \(A_n/T^2\) and the relatively free algebra \(A_n/T^{j+1}\), \(n\geq 3\), \(j\geq 2\), where \(T\) is the commutator ideal of \(A_n\). Comparing with the other known wild automorphisms (e.g. the famous automorphism of Anick which is wild both in \(k\langle x,y,z\rangle\) and \(k\langle x,y,z\rangle/T^2\)), the automorphisms in the paper are wild because they cannot be lifted to automorphisms of the free associative algebra.