The continuity of \(p\)-rationality of characters and the principal block (Q6917133)

For a finite group \(G\), the \(p\)-rationality level of \(\chi \in \mathrm{Irr}(G)\) is the integer \(\alpha\) such that \(c(\chi)_p = p^\alpha\), where \(c(\chi)\) is the conductor of \(\chi\). The main result (Theorem A) confirms a conjecture by \textit{N. N. Hung} [Trans. Am. Math. Soc. 377, No. 1, 323--344 (2024; Zbl 1535.20051)] for \(p=2\) and principal blocks: If \(B_0(G)\) contains a character of \(2'\)-degree with \(2\)-rationality level \(\alpha \geq 2\), then it contains such characters of level \(\beta\) for all \(2 \leq \beta \leq \alpha\). This refines Hung's result [loc. cit.] by localizing the phenomenon to the principal block. Theorem 3.3 reduces the conjecture for arbitrary primes to verifying conditions on quasi-simple and almost simple groups; for \(p=2\) this is achieved using Lusztig series and Jordan decomposition. Theorem 5.5 shows that for groups with normal Sylow \(p\)-subgroup, all almost \(p\)-rational characters of \(p'\)-degree are \(p\)-rational if and only if certain automorphism and conjugacy class conditions on \(N_G(P)/\Phi(P)\) hold.