Integer group determinants for small groups

Special sequences and polynomials (11B83) Matrices, determinants in number theory (11C20) Heights (11G50) PV-numbers and generalizations; other special algebraic numbers; Mahler measure (11R06) Polynomials (irreducibility, etc.) (11R09) Cyclotomy (11T22) Matrices of integers (15B36) Character groups and dual objects (43A40)

Abstract: For every group of order at most 14 we determine the values taken by its group determinant when its variables are integers.

Review text

The group determinant \(\mathcal{D}_{G}(x_{g_{1}},\dots,x_{g_{n}})\) of a finite group \(G\) \(=\{g_{1},\dots,g_{n}\}\) is the determinant of the \(n\times n\) matrix whose \((i,j)\)th entry is \(x_{g_{j}g_{k}^{-1}}\), where \(\{x_{g}\mid g\in G\}\) is a set of \(n\) independent variables. Then, \(\mathcal{D}_{G}(x_{g_{1}},\dots,x_{g_{n}})\) is an homogeneous polynomial of degree \(n\) in \(x_{g_{1}},\dots,x_{g_{n}}\) with (rational) integer coefficients, and \[ \mathcal{S}(G):=\{ \mathcal{D}_{G}(a_{g_{1}},\dots,a_{g_{n}})\mid (a_{g_{1}},\dots,a_{g_{n}})\in \mathbb{Z}^{n}\}\subset \mathbb{Z}. \] In connection with a question of Olga Taussky-Todd about integers which may be expressed as circulant determinants with integers entries, several authors obtained descriptions of some \(\mathcal{S}(\mathbb{Z}_{n})\), where \(\mathbb{Z}_{n}\) is the additive cyclic group of order \(n\). Recall also that the (logarithmic) Lind-Mahler measure of a polynomial \(F\in \mathbb{Z[}x_{1},\dots,x_{r}]\) over an abelian group \(G=\mathbb{Z}_{n_{1}} \mathbb{\times \cdot \cdot \cdot \times Z}_{n_{r}}\) is the quantity \(\log \left\vert M_{G}(F)\right\vert /n\), where \[ M_{G}(F):=\prod_{j_{1}=1}^{n_{1}}\dots \prod_{j_{r}=1}^{n_{r}}F(e^{i2\pi j_{1}/n_{1}},\dots,e^{i2\pi j_{r}/n_{r}}), \] and the equalities \[ \mathcal{D}_{G}(a_{g_{1}},\dots,a_{g_{n}})=M_{G}(\sum_{g=(j_{1},\dots,j_{r})\in G}a_{g}x_{1}^{j_{1}}\cdots x_{r}^{j_{r}}), \] and \[ \mathcal{S}(G)=M_{G}(\mathbb{Z}[x_{1},\dots,x_{r}]/<x_{1}^{n_{1}}-1,\dots,x_{r}^{n_{r}}-1>), \] where \(<x_{1}^{n_{1}}-1,\dots,x_{r}^{n_{r}}-1>\) is the ideal of the ring \(\mathbb{Z[}x_{1},\dots,x_{r}]\) generated by \(\{x_{1}^{n_{1}}-1,\dots,x_{r}^{n_{r}}-1\}\), allowed certain authors to determine properties of \(\mathcal{S}(G)\) for some abelian groups \(G\). In [Acta Arith. 186, No. 4, 377-395 (2018; Zbl 1434.11212)], \textit{T. Boerkoel} and and the first author have suggested a way to extend the concept of Lind-Mahler measure to non-abelian finite groups, and have used it to determine \(\mathcal{S}(G)\), when \(G\) runs through certain families of Dihedral groups \(D_{2n}\). This way may be stated as follows. Suppose that the group \(G\) is defined by the relations \(\mathcal{R}(\alpha_{1},\dots,\alpha_{r})\), where \(\alpha_{1},\dots,\alpha_{r}\) generate \(G\), and let \[ F(x_{1},\dots,x_{r})=\sum_{g=\alpha_{1}^{m_{1}}\cdot \cdot \cdot \alpha_{r}^{m_{r}}\in G}a_{g}x_{1}^{m_{1}}\cdot \cdot \cdot x_{r}^{m_{r}}\bmod \mathcal{R}(x_{1},\dots,x_{r}) \] be an element of \(\mathbb{Z}\mathbb{[}x_{1},\dots,x_{r}]/<\mathcal{R}(x_{1},\dots,x_{r})>\). Then \[ M_{G}(F):=\mathcal{D}_{G}(a_{g_{1}},\dots,a_{g_{n}}), \tag{*} \] and \(m_{G}(F):=\log \left\vert M_{G}(F)\right\vert /n\) whenever \(M_{G}(F)\neq 0\). In the paper under review, the authors continue to investigate the sets \(\mathcal{S}(G)\), and by considering the cases \[ G\in \left\{ Q_{8},\mathbb{Z}_{2}\times \mathbb{Z}_{4},\mathbb{Z}_{2}^{3}, \mathbb{Z}_{3}\times \mathbb{Z}_{3},A_{4},Q_{12},\mathbb{Z}_{12},\mathbb{Z}_{2}\times \mathbb{Z}_{6}\right\} \] they complete the description of all \(\mathcal{S}(G)\), where \(G\) has order at most \(14\). This is achieved by working interchangeably with group determinants and polynomial measures, via (*), and using a reduction property, as illustrated by the case \(G=Q_{4n}\) (the dicyclic group of order \(4n)\), where \(\mathcal{S}(Q_{4n})\) is expressed as Lind-Mahler measures of some associated polynomials over \(\mathbb{Z}_{2n}\).

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