The fundamental group of the p-subgroup complex

Abstract: We study the fundamental group of the

p

-subgroup complex of a finite group

G

. We show first that

p i_{1} (A_{3} (A_{10}))

is not a free group (here

A_{10}

is the alternating group on

10

letters). This is the first concrete example in the literature of a

p

-subgroup complex with non-free fundamental group. We prove that, modulo a well-known conjecture of M. Aschbacher,

p i_{1} (A_{p} (G)) = p i_{1} (A_{p} (S_{G})) * F

, where

F

is a free group and

p i_{1} (A_{p} (S_{G}))

is free if

S_{G}

is not almost simple. Here

S_{G} = O m e g a_{1} (G) / O_{p^{'}} (O m e g a_{1} (G))

. This result essentially reduces the study of the fundamental group of

p

-subgroup complexes to the almost simple case. We also exhibit various families of almost simple groups whose

p

-subgroup complexes have free fundamental group.

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