Character degrees of finite \(p\)-groups by coclass. (Q406351)

The coclass approach to the theory of finite \(p\)-groups has shown that by looking at these groups in a proper way, that is, not by increasing nilpotence class, but by coclass, one can discern a deep regularity in the apparent chaos. (See the two classical papers by \textit{A. Shalev} [Invent. Math. 115, No. 2, 315-345 (1994; Zbl 0795.20009)] and \textit{C. R. Leedham-Green} [J. Lond. Math. Soc., II. Ser. 50, No. 1, 49-67 (1994; Zbl 0822.20018)]). A striking result of \textit{B. Eick} and \textit{C. Leedham-Green} [Bull. Lond. Math. Soc. 40, No. 2, 274-288 (2008; Zbl 1168.20007)] states for instance that all groups in a coclass family (see the paper for the definitions) can be expressed by a single presentation depending on parameters, as in the familiar case of the dihedral \(2\)-groups \(\langle a,b:a^2=1,\;b^{2^s}=1,\;b^a=b^{-1}\rangle\). Another result of \textit{B. Eick} and \textit{D. Feichtenschlager} [Int. J. Algebra Comput. 21, No. 4, 635-649 (2011; Zbl 1239.20020)] states that for each coclass family there exists a polynomial \(f\) with rational coefficients such that eventually the order of the Schur multiplier of the \(k\)-th group in the family is \(f(p^k)\). Similar results where obtained by \textit{B. Eick} [J. Algebra 300, No. 1, 91-101 (2006; Zbl 1099.20012)] for the automorphism groups of finite \(2\)-groups, and by the author, in his 2013 PhD thesis at Braunschweig, for the automorphism groups of finite \(p\)-groups. In the paper under review, the author tackles the extremely interesting case of character degrees of finite \(p\)-groups. The main result states the following. Consider a coclass family of finite \(p\)-groups, and write \(d\) for the dimension of the associated pro-\(p\)-group. Then there exists an integer \(b\) such that all irreducible characters of the \(k\)-th group in the family have degree at most \(p^b\). And if \(t\) is any integer between \(0\) and \(b\), then there exists a polynomial \(f_t\) with rational coefficients and degree at most \(d\), such that eventually the number of irreducible characters of the \(k\)-th group in the family which have degree \(p^t\) is \(f_t(p^k)\).