Relative property (T) and the vanishing of the first \(\ell^2\)-Betti number (Q617777)

Let \(\Gamma\) be a topological group with closed subgroup \(A\). The pair \((\Gamma,A)\) is said to have relative property (T) if every unitary representation of \(\Gamma\) with almost invariant vectors has \(A\)-invariant vectors. The main result of the paper under review is that if \((\Gamma,A)\) has relative property (T) with \(A\) infinite and weakly normal or weakly quasi-normal in \(\Gamma\), then \(\beta_1(\Gamma)=0\). Because many examples of non-trivial group pairs with relative property (T) are of the form (\(\Gamma\), \(A\)), where \(A\) is normal and amenable, this result could be considered a natural extension of [Potential Anal. 6, No.4, 313--326 (1997; Zbl 0882.22013)], in which \textit{M.E.B. Bekka} and \textit{A. Valette} show that if \(\Gamma\) has property (T) or if \(\Gamma\) is finitely generated and contains a normal amenable subgroup, then \(\beta_1(\Gamma)=0\). The two cases (that of \(A\) being infinite and weakly normal in \(\Gamma\) and that of \(A\) being infinite and weakly quasi-normal in \(\Gamma\)) are considered individually and proven through a sequence of lemmas. Finally, the result is applied to the elementary matrix group \(\mathrm{EL}_n(\mathcal{R})\) of a countable unital ring \(\mathcal{R}\) of characteristic \(0\). In particular, it is shown that in this case, for \(n\geq 3\), \(\beta_1(\mathrm{EL}_n(\mathcal{R}))=0.\)