A new approach to representation theory of symmetric groups (Q679115)

The authors develop the representation theory of the symmetric groups using the spectrum of the Jucys-Murphy (JM) elements inside the group algebra. This is based on the fact that the JM elements \(X_i=(1 i)+(2 i)+\cdots+(i-1 i)\), \(i=1,2,\ldots,n\), generate the largest commutative subalgebra of the group algebra, that is, the Gelfand-Tsetlin subalgebra. Hence the JM elements diagonalize simultaneously in any representation of the symmetric group \(S_n\), and all the representation theory is encoded in their spectra. The authors' approach is to construct recursively the representations of \(S_n\) from \(S_{n-1}\) and to use the algebra \(H(2)\) generated by \(X_i,X_{i+1}\) and \(s_i=(i i+1)\). There is a strong parallel between this approach and Cartan's highest weight theory for reductive groups. In this paper they rederive Young's formulas for the matrix entries of a generator \(s_i\), and the Murnaghan-Nakayama rule for the irreducible characters. The interest of this method lies in the fact that it can be generalized to any of the classical families of Coxeter groups. The authors announce that this will be done in future publications. In fact this method should work for any algebra with local system of generators.