Random walk on group extensions (Q7009937)

The authors consider a sequence of independent identically distributed random variables with values in a finite multiplicative group \(G\) and with probability law \(\mu\). For a positive integer step, the random walk on \(G\) is defined as a product. It is assumed that the measure \(\mu\) is symmetric and generates \(G\). The spectral gap of \(\mu\) is defined, and the extension \(1\to B\to G\to H\to 1\) is introduced. The main goal of the paper is to start with this group extension and a random walk with respect to a random variable \(X\) with values in \(G\), and control the spectral gap \(\lambda(X)\) in terms of group properties of \(H\) and \(B\), and in terms of properties of \(\pi(X)\), where \(\pi: G\to H\) (and if needed, to control the spectral gap of the induced random-walk on \(G/H\)). The authors take an axiomatic approach and isolate certain group theoretic conditions for \(H\) and \(B\), in order to be able to study a random walk on an extension \(G\) of \(H\) by \(B\). Under these bounded generation and bounded scaled conditions, they estimate the spectral gap of a random walk on a quasi-random-by-nilpotent group in terms of the spectral gap of its projection to the quasi-random part. They also estimate the spectral gap of a random walk on a product of two quasi-random groups in terms of the spectral gap of its projections to the given factors. Based on these results, the spectral gap of a random walk on the \(\mathbb F_q\)-points of a perfect algebraic group \(G\) in terms of the spectral gap of its projections to the almost simple factors of the semisimple quotient of \(G\) are studied. Some other findings are also presented. These results extend a work of \textit{E. Lindenstrauss} and \textit{P. P. Varjú} [Ann. Fac. Sci. Toulouse, Math. (6) 25, No. 5, 969--993 (2016; Zbl 1384.60018)].