Topological homology semi-biplanes (Q5938009)

A semi-biplane is an incidence structure where each pair of points is incident with either \(0\) or \(2\)~blocks, and dually. In order to avoid anomalies one further requires that the incidence graph is connected and that the usual richness conditions are satisfied. The most interesting class of semi-biplanes arises as the induced incidence structure of the points and lines of a projective plane which are not fixed by a given involutory homology; these are called homology semi-biplanes. Observe that each Desarguesian plane over a field of characteristic unequal to~\(2\) admits such a homology. A generalized quadrangle is anti-regular if for any triplet of pairwise opposite points the set of points which is joint to all three of them has cardinality either \(0\) or~\(2\). Classical examples are the orthogonal quadrangles over a field of characteristic unequal to~\(2\). Based on their own previous work [Bull. Belg. Math. Soc. Simon Stevin 4, No.~5, 625-637 (1997; Zbl 0920.51003); Errata: ibid.~5, No.~1, 115 (1998) and Geom. Dedicata 69, No. 2, 207-221 (1998; Zbl 0898.51005)] the authors prove that the previously known semi-biplanes arising from any two non-collinear points in a compact connected anti-regular generalized quadrangle are, in fact, homology semi-biplanes.