Condition \((\mathbf{S}+)\) in ranks \(4, 8\), and \(9\) (Q6496519)

The authors work over an algebraically closed field \(\mathbb{C}\) of characteristic zero, which they take to be \(\bar{\mathbb{Q}}_{\ell}\) for a suitable prime \(\ell\). For a nonzero finite-dimensional \(\mathbb{C}\)-vector space \(V\), a group \(\Gamma\) and a representation \(\Phi :\Gamma \rightarrow\)GL\((V)\), the pair \((\Gamma ,V)\) satisfies condition \((\mathbf{S}+\)) if the \(\Gamma\)-module \(V\) is irreducible, primitive, indecomposable, not tensor induced and the determinant \(\det (\Gamma |V)\) is finite. Condition\((\mathbf{S}+\)) plays a key role in the study of Kloosterman and hypergeometric \(\ell\)-adic local systems in positive characteristic \(p\); the latter have been studied in previous papers of the authors. Prior results establish \((\mathbf{S}+\)) for primitive Kloosterman and hypergeometric sheaves, except possibly in ranks 4, 8, and 9. In this paper the authors study \((\mathbf{S}+\)) in these remaining ranks, and completely determine when \((\mathbf{S}+\)) does or does not hold.