Products of commutators and the order of a finite group. (Q958527)

For a finite nonabelian group \(G\), let \(\lambda(G)\) be the smallest positive integer such that every element of \([G,G]\) is expressible as a product of \(\lambda(G)\) commutators. Improving an earlier result of \textit{P. X. Gallagher} [Can. J. Math. 17, 405-410 (1965; Zbl 0134.26202)], the author shows that \(|[G,G]|\geqslant(\lambda(G)+1)!(\lambda(G)-1)\)!. The proof makes use of character degree formulae going back to Burnside. As a corollary, the author answers in the affirmative \textit{V. G. Bardakov}'s question 16.8 in the Kourovka Notebook [\textit{V. D. Mazurov, E. I. Khukhro} (eds.), The Kourovka notebook. Unsolved problems in group theory. 16th ed., Novosibirsk: Institute of Mathematics (2006; Zbl 1084.20001)] by proving that \(\tfrac{\lambda(G)}{|G|}\leqslant\tfrac 16\), with the bound attained only at the group \(S_3\). Furthermore, this ratio tends to 0 as \(|G|\) tends to infinity, and is at most \(1/250\) for \(|G|>1000\).