Modular representations of \(\mathrm{GL}_2(\mathbb{F}_q)\) using calculus (Q6964002)

This paper develops an explicit construction of certain modular representations of \(\mathrm{GL}_2(\mathbb{F}_q)\) as cokernels of differential operators acting on symmetric power representations. The main focus is on expressing induced modular representations from Borel subgroups or anisotropic tori in terms of differential and divided-difference operators, revealing new algebraic structures and improving known periodicity results.\N\NThe authors study the theta filtration on \(V_r= \mathrm{Sym}^r(\mathbb{F}_p^2)\), viewed as the space of homogeneous degree \(r\) polynomials in two variables with coefficients in \(\mathbb{F}_p\), equipped with the natural action of \(\mathrm{GL}_2(\mathbb{F}_p)\). They construct \(G\)-equivariant maps identifying the quotients \(V_r / V_r^{(m+1)}\) with induced representations from Borel subgroups, under explicit non-divisibility conditions involving binomial coefficients. The key novelty lies in the systematic use of differential operators such as \(\nabla = a\,\partial/\partial X + b\,\partial/\partial Y\) and its twisted analogues to describe these maps, thereby extending earlier constructions based on evaluation.\N\NA principal result (Theorem 1.1) states that if \(p \nmid \binom{r}{m}\) and \(r \ge (m+1)(p+1)-1\), then\N\[\NV_r \big/ V_r^{(m+1)} \cong \operatorname{Ind}_B^G\bigl(V_m \otimes d_{\,r-m}\bigr),\N\]\Nwhere \(d_{\,r-m}\) is a character of the Borel subgroup and \(V_m\) is the symmetric power of lower degree. When \(p\) divides the binomial coefficient, the authors analyze the structure of extensions in the filtration and show that exactly one extension class splits, depending on the residue of \(r\) modulo \(p\). This leads to a refined understanding of the splitting behaviour in the theta filtration and to decompositions of the form\N\[\NV_r \big/ V_r^{(m+1)} \cong V_r \big/ V_r^{(i+1)} \;\oplus\; V_r^{(i+1)} \big/ V_r^{(m+1)}.\N\]\NThe methods are extended to \(\mathrm{GL}_2(\mathbb{F}_q)\) for arbitrary \(q=p^f\) by introducing twisted Dickson polynomials and Frobenius-twisted modules, leading to analogous decompositions (Theorem 1.3). The authors also prove periodicity results for the quotients under congruence conditions modulo \(q-1\).\N\NIn a separate section, differential operators of Serre type, notably \(D = X^{p}\partial/\partial X + Y^{p}\partial/\partial Y\) and its twisted variants, yield explicit isomorphisms such as \( \bigl(V_{r + p - 1} \big/ D(V_r)\bigr) \otimes V_{p - 1} \;\cong\; \operatorname{Ind}_{T}^{G}\,\omega_2^{\,r}\), thereby providing a constructive realization of the mod \(p\) reduction of cuspidal representations \(\Theta(\omega_2^{\,r})\) without recourse to crystalline cohomology.\N\NThe paper concludes with a twisted version of this construction for \(\mathrm{GL}_2(\mathbb{F}_q)\), involving Frobenius twists and twisted Serre operators.