Applications of the Frobenius formulas for the characters of the symmetric group and the Hecke algebras of type A (Q674783)

The authors give generalisations of a number of standard formulae in the ordinary representation theory of the symmetric group \({\mathfrak S}_n\) to the case of the type A Hecke algebra \(H_n(q)\). In particular, they discuss a generalisation of the Frobenius formula \(p_\mu=\sum_\lambda \chi^\lambda (\mu)s_\lambda\) which expresses the power sum symmetric function \(p_\mu\) for the partition \(\mu\) of \(n\) in terms of the Schur functions \(s_\lambda\). The generalisation of this formula, due to the first author [Invent. Math. 106, No. 3, 461-488 (1991; Zbl 0758.05099)] replaces \(p_\mu\) by a symmetric function \(\overline q_\mu\) which depends on the parameter \(q\), and the irreducible character \(\chi_\lambda\) of \({\mathfrak S}_n\) by the corresponding character of \(H_n(q)\). Explicitly, the coefficient in \(\overline q_r\) of a monomial of degree \(r\) involving \(a\) of the variables is \(q^{r-a} (1-q)^{a-1}\), and \(\overline q_\mu=\prod_i \overline q_{\mu_i}\). For \(q=1\) we recover \(p_\mu\). The formula which expresses \(p_r\) as the alternating sum of the functions \(s_\lambda \) for hook partitions \(\lambda\) is generalised to \(\overline q_r\) by inserting a factor \(q^{m-1}\) in the term where \(m\) is the largest part of \(\lambda\). This is used to give a generalisation of the Murnaghan-Nakayama rule for computing the irreducible characters of \(H_n(q)\). The authors next develop a connection between the characters of the Hecke algebra and the decomposition of Kronecker products of the irreducible characters of \({\mathfrak S}_n\). This leads to combinatorial algorithms for computing the coefficients of hook partitions (and also of two-part partitions) in such products. Finally, they derive formulae for the characters \(\chi^R\) and \(\chi^I\) of the regular representation \(R\) of \(H_n(q)\) and the representation \(I\) of \(H_n (q)\) on the \(G=\text{GL}_n(F_q)\)-module induced from the trivial representation of a Borel subgroup \(B\) of \(G\). The key to the use of the Frobenius formula to calculate \(\chi^I\) is to recognise it as a Markov or Ocneanu trace for the Hecke algebra.