A note on separability in outer automorphism groups (Q6937096)

This note addresses subgroup separability in outer automorphism groups, extending a criterion previously established by \textit{M.~Hagen} and \textit{A.~Sisto} [Bull. Lond. Math. Soc. 55, 2242--2257 (2023; Zbl 1528.20068)]. Their main theorem states that if the preimage of \(H \leq \mathrm{MCG}(\Sigma_g)\) under the quotient map \(\mathrm{MCG}(\Sigma_g \setminus \{p\}) \to \mathrm{MCG}(\Sigma_g)\) is conjugacy separable, then \(H\) is separable. This applies to torsion-free, malnormal, convex-cocompact subgroups \(H\) of the mapping class group \(\mathrm{MCG}(\Sigma_g)\), where the corresponding extension group \(\Gamma_H\) satisfies the conjugacy separability assumption.\N\NThe present work removes the assumptions of torsion-freeness and malnormality: if the same preimage of \(H\) is conjugacy separable, then \(H\) is separable (Theorem~A). More generally, the author proves a structural result (Theorem~C): if \(G\) is a finitely generated group with trivial centre such that \(\mathrm{Aut}(G)\) is acylindrically hyperbolic and has no non-trivial finite normal subgroups, then any subgroup \(H \leq \mathrm{Out}(G)\) whose preimage in \(\mathrm{Aut}(G)\) is conjugacy separable is separable. This yields several applications: for instance, separability of subgroups of \(\mathrm{Out}(G)\) where \(G\) is a torsion-free hyperbolic group or a right-angled Artin group defined by a connected graph that does not decompose as a non-trivial join.