The critical number of finite abelian groups (Q841258)

Suppose that \(G\) is an additive finite abelian group. Let the critical number \(\text{cr}(G)\) of \(G\) denote the smallest positive integer such that for every \(S\subseteq G\setminus\{0\}\) with \(|S|\geq \text{cr}(G)\), \[ \bigg\{\sum_{a\in I}a:\, \emptyset\not=I\subseteq S\bigg\}=G. \] In the present paper, the authors proved that \(\text{cr}(G)=p+q-2\), if \(G\) is a cyclic group of order \(pq\) where \(p,q\) are primes with \(p+\lfloor2\sqrt{p-2}\rfloor+1<q<2p\). Thus according to the previous works [\textit{G. T. Diderrich} and \textit{H. B. Mann}, Survey combin. Theory, Sympos. Colorado State Univ., Colorado 1971, 95--100 (1973; Zbl 0258.20051), \textit{G. T. Diderrich}, J. Number Theory 7, 33--48 (1975; Zbl 0295.10042)], \textit{H. B. Mann} and \textit{Y. F. Wou}, Monatsh. Math. 102, 273--308 (1986; Zbl 0597.10049), \textit{J. A. Dias da Silva} and \textit{Y. O. Hamidoune}, Bull. Lond. Math. Soc. 26, No. 2, 140--146 (1994; Zbl 0819.11007), \textit{W. Gao} and \textit{Y. O. Hamidoune}, Acta Arith. 88, No.3, 233--237 (1999; Zbl 0935.11004), \textit{J. R. Griggs}, Discrete Math. 229, No. 1-3, 89--99 (2001; Zbl 0974.20042)], the critical numbers of all finite abelian groups can be determined.