On the Clifford-Littlewood-Eckmann groups: A new look at periodicity mod 8 (Q802652)

The authors consider the groups \(G_{s,t}\) (s\(\geq 0,t\geq 0)\) with generators \(\epsilon,a_ 1,...,a_ s\), \(b_ 1,...,b_ t\) subject to the relations: \(\epsilon^ 2=1\); for all i and j, \(a_ i^ 2=\epsilon\), \(b_ j^ 2=1\), \(b_ j\epsilon =\epsilon b_ j\), and \(a_ ib_ j=\epsilon b_ ja_ i\); and for all \(i\neq j\), \(a_ ia_ j=\epsilon a_ ja_ i\) and \(b_ ib_ j=\epsilon b_ jb_ i\). Each \(G_{s,t}\) has order \(2^{2+t+1}\). The authors call these Clifford- Littlewood-Eckmann groups, and point out that they arise in physics, as well as appearing in groups of units of certain Clifford algebras, and arising in connection with the Hurwitz problem of composition of quadratic forms. The \(G_{s,t}\) with \(s+t\) even are exactly the extra- special 2-groups. In this well-written and highly readable paper the authors show how all the \(G_{s,t}\) can be built from the smallest such groups, and use this to give new and much simpler proofs of several results concerning these groups and the corresponding Clifford algebras. They work in the category of pairs (G,\(\epsilon\)), where G is a group and \(\epsilon\) is a distinguished central involution of G. From two such groups \((G,\epsilon_ G)\) and \((H,\epsilon_ H)\) they form a kind of product G\({\dot \times}H\) defined to be (G\(\times H)/N\), where N is the (normal) subgroup of \(G\times H\) generated by \((\epsilon_ G,\epsilon_ H)\). They prove (among other identities) that \(G_{s+2,t}\cong Q{\dot \times}G_{s,t}\) and \(G_{s,t+2}\cong D{\dot \times}G_{s,t}\), where \(Q=G_{2,0}\) is the quaternion group and \(D=G_{0,2}\cong G_{1,1}\) is the dihedral group of order 8. It follows that every \(G_{s,t}\) can be expressed as an iterated product of the \(G_{m,n}\) with \(m+n\leq 2\). This leads quickly to a determination of the irreducible representations of \(G_{s,t}\) over \({\mathbb{C}}\) in terms of the representations of the \(G_{m,n}\), and likewise a determination of the irreducible real orthogonal representations of the \(G_{s,t}\). From this the authors easily derive the formulas for the generalized Hurwitz-Radon functions associated to composition of quadratic forms. Additionally, the decomposition of \(G_{s,t}\) allows them to determine the isomorphism classes of the maximal abelian and maximal elementary abelian subgroups of \(G_{s,t}\). Further, the authors observe that the Clifford algebra \(C(s<-1>\perp t<1>)\) over a field F (of characteristic not 2) is a homomorphic image of the group algebra \(F[G_{s,t}]\). This allows them to give new direct proofs of the periodicity formulas for these Clifford algebras from the decomposition properties of the \(G_{s,t}.\) Associated to \(G_{s,t}\) there is a quadratic form q: \(G_{s,t}/<\epsilon >\to {\mathbb{Z}}/2{\mathbb{Z}}\) defined by \(\epsilon^{q(x<\epsilon >)}=x^ 2\). This form has previously been studied when \(t=0\) by \textit{C. T. C. Wall} [Proc. Camb. Philos. Soc. 67, 251-262 (1970; Zbl 0197.302); and \textit{D. G. Quillen} [Math. Ann. 194, 197-212 (1971; Zbl 0225.55015)]. The authors here re-prove a theorem of Wall that \(G_{s,t}\) is determined up to isomorphism by q; they then use the decomposition of \(G_{s,t}\) to determine the dimensions of the radicals of q, the defect of q, and its Arf invariant. As the authors point out, the decomposition of the \(G_{s,t}\) and the dimensions of their irreducible representations were previously obtained by \textit{H. W. Braden} [J. Math. Phys. 26, 613-620 (1985; Zbl 0575.15012)].