Special subsets of difference sets with particular emphasis on skew Hadamard difference sets

This article introduces a new approach to studying difference sets via their additive properties. We introduce the concept of special subsets, which are interesting combinatorial objects in their own right, but also provide a mechanism for measuring additive regularity. Skew Hadamard difference sets are given special attention, and the structure of their special subsets leads to several results on multipliers, including a categorisation of the full multiplier group of an abelian skew Hadamard difference set. We also count the number of ways to write elements as a product of any number of elements of a skew Hadamard difference set.      

Codebooks from almost difference sets

In direct spread CDMA systems, codebooks meeting the Welch bounds are used to distinguish among the signals of different users. Recently, constructions of codebooks with difference sets meeting Welch’s bound on the maximum cross-correlation amplitude were developed. In this paper, a generic construction of codebooks using almost difference sets is considered and several classes of codebooks nearly meeting the Welch bound are obtained. The parameters of the codebooks constructed in this paper are new.      

An extension of building sets and relative difference sets

Building sets are a successful tool for constructing semi‐regular divisible difference sets and, in particular, semi‐regular relative difference sets. In this paper, we present an extension theorem for building sets under simple conditions. Some of the semi‐regular relative difference sets obtained using the extension theorem are new in the sense that their ambient groups have smaller ranks than previously known. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Combin Designs 8: 50–57, 2000     

Two constructions of (v, (v − 1)/2, (v − 3)/2) difference families

In this article, two constructions of (v, (v ? 1)/2, (v ? 3)/2) difference families are presented. The first construction produces both cyclic and noncyclic difference families, while the second one gives only cyclic difference families. The parameters of the second construction are new. The difference families presented in this article can be used to construct Hadamard matrices. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Combin Designs 16: 164–171, 2008     

Constructions of optimal difference systems of sets

Difference systems of sets (DSSs) are combinatorial configurations which were introduced in 1971 by Levenstein for the construction of codes for synchronization. In this paper, we present two kinds of constructions of difference systems of sets by using disjoint difference families and a special type of difference sets, respectively. As a consequence, new infinite classes of optimal DSSs are obtained.     

Tightening Turyn’s bound for Hadamard difference sets

This work examines the existence of (4q ²,2q ²−q,q ²−q) difference sets, for q=p ^f , where p is a prime and f is a positive integer. Suppose that G is a group of order 4q ² which has a normal subgroup K of order q such that G/K ≅ C _q ×C ₂×C ₂, where C _q ,C ₂ are the cyclic groups of order q and 2 respectively. Under the assumption that p is greater than or equal to 5, this work shows that G does not admit (4q ²,2q ²−q,q ²−q) difference sets.     

Exhaustive determination of (1023, 511, 255)-cyclic difference sets

An exhaustive search for (1023, 511, 255)-cyclic difference sets has been conducted. A total of 10 non-equivalent (1023, 511, 255)-cyclic difference sets have been found, all of which are members of previously known or conjectured infinite families. A fast and effective autocorrelation test method was utilized that can also facilitate the testing of longer sequences.

     

Some remarks on orders of projective planes,planar difference sets and multipliers

In this paper we investigate how finite group theory, number theory, together with the geometry of substructures can be used in the study of finite projective planes. Some remarks concerning the function v(x)= x ² + x + 1are presented, for example, how the geometry of a subplane affects the factorization of v(x). The rest of this paper studies abelian planar difference sets by multipliers.Partially supported by NSA grant MDA904-90-H-1013.     

Investigation of solvable (120, 35, 10) difference sets

Abelian difference sets with parameters (120, 35, 10) were ruled out by Turyn in 1965. Turyn's techniques do not apply to nonabelian groups. We attempt to determine the existence of (120, 35, 10) difference sets in the 44 nonabelian groups of order 120. We prove that if a solvable group admits a (120, 35, 10) difference set, then it admits a quotient group isomorphic to the cyclic group of order 24 or to U₂₄ ? 〈x,y : x⁸ = y³ = 1, xyx^?1 = y^?1〉. We describe a computer search, which rules out solutions with a ?₂₄ quotient. The existence question remains undecided in the three solvable groups admitting a U₂₄ quotient. The question also remains undecided for the three nonsolvable groups of order 120. © 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Arithmetic structure in sparse difference sets

Using a slight modification of an argument of Croot, Ruzsa and Schoen we establish a quantitative result on the existence of a dilated copy of any given configuration of integer points in sparse difference sets. More precisely, given any configuration {v₁,…,v?} of vectors in Zd, we show that if A⊂d[1,N] with |A|/Nd?CN−1/?, then there necessarily exists r≠0 such that {rv₁,…,rv?}⊆A−A.     

Proper partial geometries with Singer groups and pseudogeometric partial difference sets

A partial geometry admitting a Singer group G is equivalent to a partial difference set in G admitting a certain decomposition into cosets of line stabilizers. We develop methods for the classification of these objects, in particular, for the case of abelian Singer groups. As an application, we show that a proper partial geometry Π=pg(s+1,t+1,2) with an abelian Singer group G can only exist if t=2(s+2) and G is an elementary abelian 3-group of order ³(s+1) or Π is the Van Lint-Schrijver partial geometry. As part of the proof, we show that the Diophantine equation (m³−1)/2=(²rw−1)/(r²−1) has no solutions in integers m,r?1, w?2, settling a case of Goormaghtigh's equation.     

Planar cyclic difference packings

A planar cyclic difference packing modulo v is a collection D = {d₁, d₂,…,d_k} of distinct residues modulo v such that any residue α ≢ 0 (mod v) has at most one representation as a difference d_i − d_j (mod v). This paper develops various constructions of such designs and for a fixed positive integer v presents upper and lower bounds on Ψ (v), the maximal number of elements that a planar cyclic difference packing modulo v can contain. This paper also presents the results of calculating Ψ (v) for v ≤ 144, including the fact that 134 is the smallest value of v for which the elementary upper bound of exceeds Ψ (v) by two. © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Combin Designs 8: 426–434, 2000     

Random intersections of thick Cantor sets

Let , be Cantor sets embedded in the real line, and let , be their respective thicknesses. If , then it is well known that the difference set is a disjoint union of closed intervals. B. Williams showed that for some , it may be that is as small as a single point. However, the author previously showed that generically, the other extreme is true; contains a Cantor set for all in a generic subset of . This paper shows that small intersections of thick Cantor sets are also rare in the sense of Lebesgue measure; if , then contains a Cantor set for almost all in .

     

Adequacy of finite difference schemes for convection‐diffusion equations

Finite difference schemes for the numerical solution of singularly perturbed convection problems on uniform grids are studied in the limit case where the viscosity and the meshsize approach zero at the same time. The present error estimates are given in terms of order of magnitude in the above limit process and are useful in a priori choosing adequate schemes and meshsizes for boundary‐layer problems and problems with closed characteristics. Published 2002 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Numer Methods Partial Differential Eq 18: 280–295, 2002; Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI 10.1002/num.10007     

Linking systems of difference sets

A linking system of difference sets is a collection of mutually related group difference sets, whose advantageous properties have been used to extend classical constructions of systems of linked symmetric designs. The central problems are to determine which groups contain a linking system of difference sets, and how large such a system can be. All previous constructive results for linking systems of difference sets are restricted to 2‐groups. We use an elementary projection argument to show that neither the McFarland/Dillon nor the Spence construction of difference sets can give rise to a linking system of difference sets in non‐2‐groups. We make a connection to Kerdock and bent sets, which provides large linking systems of difference sets in elementary abelian 2‐groups. We give a new construction for linking systems of difference sets in 2‐groups, taking advantage of a previously unrecognized connection with group difference matrices. This construction simplifies and extends prior results, producing larger linking systems than before in certain 2‐groups, new linking systems in other 2‐groups for which no system was previously known, and the first known examples in nonabelian groups.     

Fuzzy implication operators for difference operations for fuzzy sets and cardinality-based measures of comparison

In this paper, we determine by means of fuzzy implication operators, two classes of difference operations for fuzzy sets and two classes of symmetric difference operations for fuzzy sets which preserve properties of the classical difference operation for crisp sets and the classical symmetric difference operation for crisp sets respectively. The obtained operations allow us to construct as in [B. De Baets, H. De Meyer, Transitivity-preserving fuzzification schemes for cardinality-based similarity measures, European Journal of Operational Research 160 (2005) 726–740], cardinality-based similarity measures which are reflexive, symmetric and transitive fuzzy relations and, to propose two classes of distances (metrics) which are fuzzy versions of the well-known distance of cardinality of the symmetric difference of crisp sets.