Universal coverings of Steinberg Lie algebras of small characteristic (Q877705)

Let \(K\) be a unital commutative ring, \(R\) a unital associative \(K\)-algebra. For \(n\geq 3\), the Steinberg Lie algebra \({{\mathfrak{st}}}_n(R)\) is the Lie algebra over \(K\) generated by the symbols \(X_{ij}(a),a\in R,1\leq i\neq j\leq n\), subject to the relations: \(a\mapsto X_{ij}(a)\) is a \(K\)-linear map, and \([X_{ij}(a),X_{jk}(b)]=X_{ik}(ab)\) for distinct \(i,j,k\) and \([X_{ij}(a),X_{kl}(b)]=0\) for \(j\neq k,\,i\neq l\). It is well-known that the second homology group \(H_2({{\mathfrak{st}}}_n(R))\) is trivial when \(n\geq5\). The authors in the paper under review determine explicitly \(H_2({{\mathfrak{st}}}_n(R))\) for \(n=3,4\), which is not necessarily trivial when the characteristic of \(K\) is small.