Class numbers of classical groups (Q5930769)

The main object of the paper under review is a linear algebraic group \(G\) defined over a number field \(K\) considered together with its faithful representation \(\varphi\colon G\to\text{GL}_r\) defined over \(K\) and a lattice \(L(\varphi)\) in \(K^r\). Given such data (called a realization of \(G\)), one can define the class number \(\text{cl}(G)\). To be more precise, \(\text{cl}(G)\) is a shortening for \(\text{cl}(\varphi(G))\) or \(\text{cl}(G^{L(\varphi)})\) (see \textit{V.~P.~Platonov} and \textit{A.~S.~Rapinchuk} [Algebraic groups and number theory, Nauka, Moscow (1991; Zbl 0732.20027); English transl. Academic Press, Boston (1994; Zbl 0841.20046)]). The author revisits his short notes of late 70's-early 80's with the goal to present the proofs of two results announced there. First, he considers the case where \(G\) is a group of non-compact type. For such groups, \(\text{cl}(G)\) can be any number dividing the exponent of the fundamental group of \(G\) (with respect to a suitable realization of \(G\)). In the paper under review, this is proved for the case where \(G\) is a simple classical group in its canonical representation. (In fact, the problem here can be reduced to consideration of the case of the special unitary group \(G=\text{SU}_l(D,h)\) where \(h\) is a skew-Hermitian form of dimension \(l\) over a quaternion \(K\)-algebra \(D\) with its canonical involution.) Second, groups of compact type are considered. Here the author proves a criterion for \(G\) to have class number one in a given realization. This criterion is applied to the problem of existence of a one-class form in the genus of a given positive definite quadratic form in \(\geq 3\) variables.