An extension of a theorem of G. Tallini

A Tallini set in a projective space P is a set Q of points of P such that each line not contained in Q intersects Q in at most two points. We prove that if P is a finite projective space with odd order q > 3 and dimension d > 2 and if |Q| > q^{d ? 1} + 2q^{d ? 3} + q^{d ? 4} + … + 1, then Q is essentially an orthogonal quadric. The proof of this theorem is based on a characterization of the orthogonal quadrics in every finite dimensional projective space (with possibly infinite order).     

Fluctuations in the number of points on smooth plane curves over finite fields

In this note, we study the fluctuations in the number of points on smooth projective plane curves over a finite field Fq as q is fixed and the genus varies. More precisely, we show that these fluctuations are predicted by a natural probabilistic model, in which the points of the projective plane impose independent conditions on the curve. The main tool we use is a geometric sieving process introduced by Poonen (2004) [8].     

On linear codes whose weights and length have a common divisor

In this paper we prove that a set of points (in a projective space over a finite field of q elements), which is incident with 0 mod r points of every hyperplane, has at least (r−1)q+(p−1)r points, where 1<r<q=ph, p prime. An immediate corollary of this theorem is that a linear code whose weights and length have a common divisor r<q and whose dual minimum distance is at least 3, has length at least (r−1)q+(p−1)r. The theorem, which is sharp in some cases, is a strong generalisation of an earlier result on the non-existence of maximal arcs in projective planes; the proof involves polynomials over finite fields, and is a streamlined and more transparent version of the earlier one.     

Tight sets and m-ovoids of finite polar spaces

An intriguing set of points of a generalised quadrangle was introduced in [J. Bamberg, M. Law, T. Penttila, Tight sets and m-ovoids of generalised quadrangles, Combinatorica, in press] as a unification of the pre-existing notions of tight set and m-ovoid. It was shown in [J. Bamberg, M. Law, T. Penttila, Tight sets and m-ovoids of generalised quadrangles, Combinatorica, in press] that every intriguing set of points in a finite generalised quadrangle is a tight set or an m-ovoid (for some m). Moreover, it was shown that an m-ovoid and an i-tight set of a common generalised quadrangle intersect in mi points. These results yielded new proofs of old results, and in this paper, we study the natural analogue of intriguing sets in finite polar spaces of higher rank. In particular, we use the techniques developed in this paper to give an alternative proof of a result of Thas [J.A. Thas, Ovoids and spreads of finite classical polar spaces, Geom. Dedicata 10 (1-4) (1981) 135-143] that there are no ovoids of H(2r,q²), Q⁻(2r+1,q), and W(2r−1,q) for r>2. We also strengthen a result of Drudge on the non-existence of tight sets in W(2r−1,q), H(2r+1,q²), and Q⁺(2r+1,q), and we give a new proof of a result of De Winter, Luyckx, and Thas [S. De Winter, J.A. Thas, SPG-reguli satisfying the polar property and a new semipartial geometry, Des. Codes Cryptogr. 32 (1-3) (2004) 153-166; D. Luyckx, m-Systems of finite classical polar spaces, PhD thesis, The University of Ghent, 2002] that an m-system of W(4m+3,q) or Q⁻(4m+3,q) is a pseudo-ovoid of the ambient projective space.     

Fixed points of projectivities of prime order

This work begins with a review of the classical results for fixed points of projectivities in a projective plane over a general commutative field. The second section of this work features all the material necessary to prove the main result, which is presented in Theorem 2.8. It is shown that, in a finite projective plane of order q, there exists a projectivity g? of prime order p?>?3 if and only if p divides exactly one of the integers q ? 1, q, q?+?1, q ² + q + 1. Theorem 2.8 establishes a correspondence between the possible structures of points fixed by g?, as presented in Theorem 1.3, and the integer that is divisible by p. The special case of p = 2 is handled in Sect. 2.1, where it is shown that every involution is a harmonic homology for q odd and an elation for q even. The special case of p?=?3 is handled in Sect. 2.2, and Theorem 2.8 is adapted for p?=?3 and presented as Theorem 2.15. An application of Theorems 2.8 and 2.15 is determining the sizes of (n, r)-arcs that are stabilized by projectivities of prime order p in the finite projective plane of order q; in Sect. 3, this application is presented in Propositions 3.2 and 3.3.     

A characterization of the minimalbasis of the torus

D. König asks the interesting question in [7] whether there are facts corresponding to the theorem of Kuratowski which apply to closed orientable or non-orientable surfaces of any genus. Since then this problem has been solved only for the projective plane ([2], [3], [8]). In order to demonstrate that König’s question can be affirmed we shall first prove, that every minimal graph of the minimal basis of all graphs which cannot be embedded into the orientable surface f of genusp has orientable genusp+1 and non-orientable genusq with 1≦q≦2p+2. Then let f be the torus. We shall derive a characterization of all minimal graphs of the minimal basis with the nonorientable genusq=1 which are not embeddable into the torus. There will be two very important graphs signed withX ₈ andX ₇ later. Furthermore 19 graphsG ₁,G ₂, ...,G ₁₉ of the minimal basisM(torus, >₄) will be specified. We shall prove that five of them have non-orientable genusq=1, ten of them have non-orientable genusq=2 and four of them non-orientable genusq=3. Then we shall point out a method of determining graphs of the minimal basisM(torus, >₄) which are embeddable into the projective plane. Using the possibilities of embedding into the projective plane the results of [2] and [3] are necessary. This method will be called saturation method. Using the minimal basisM(projective plane, >₄) of [3] we shall at last develop a method of determining all graphs ofM(torus, >₄) which have non-orientable genusq≧2. Applying this method we shall succeed in characterizing all minimal graphs which are not embeddable into the torus. The importance of the saturation method will be shown by determining another graphG ₂₀≠G ₁,G ₂, ...,G ₁₉ ofM(torus, >₄).     

On linear sets on a projective line

Linear sets generalise the concept of subgeometries in a projective space. They have many applications in finite geometry. In this paper we address two problems for linear sets: the equivalence problem and the intersection problem. We consider linear sets as quotient geometries and determine the exact conditions for two linear sets to be equivalent. This is then used to determine in which cases all linear sets of rank 3 of the same size on a projective line are (projectively) equivalent. In (Donati and Durante, Des Codes Cryptogr, 46:261–267), the intersection problem for subgeometries of PG(n, q) is solved. The intersection of linear sets is much more difficult. We determine the intersection of a subline PG(1, q) with a linear set in PG(1, q ^h ) and investigate the existence of irregular sublines, contained in a linear set. We also derive an upper bound, which is sharp for odd q, on the size of the intersection of two different linear sets of rank 3 in PG(1, q ^h ).     

A geometric approach to Mathon maximal arcs

In 1969 Denniston [3] gave a construction of maximal arcs of degree d in Desarguesian projective planes of even order q, for all d dividing q. In 2002 Mathon [8] gave a construction method generalizing the one of Denniston. We will give a new geometric approach to these maximal arcs. This will allow us to count the number of isomorphism classes of Mathon maximal arcs of degree 8 in PG(2,h²), h prime.     

On the embedding of some linear spaces in finite projective planes

The problem of embedding of linear spaces in finite projective planes has been examined by several authors ([1], [2], [3], [4], [5], [6]). In particular, it has been proved in [1] that a linear space which is the complement of a projective or affine subplane of order m is embeddable in a unique way in a projective plane of order n. In this article, we give a generalization of this result by embedding linear spaces in a finite projective plane of order n, which are complements of certain regularA-affine linear spaces with respect to a finite projective plane.     

Classes of optical orthogonal codes from arcs in root subspaces

We present new constructions for (n,w,λ) optical orthogonal codes (OOC) using techniques from finite projective geometry. In one case codewords correspond to (q-1)-arcs contained in Baer subspaces (and, in general, kth-root subspaces) of a projective space. In the other construction, we use sublines isomorphic to PG(2,q) lying in a projective plane isomorphic to PG(2,q^k), k>1. Our construction yields for each λ>1 an infinite family of OOCs which, in many cases, are asymptotically optimal with respect to the Johnson bound.     

Relations between two perfect ternary sequence constructions

Both R. Games [4] and V.P. Ipatov [8] have given constructions for perfect ternary sequences. Games uses difference sets and quadrics in projective space, while Ipatov uses q-ary m-sequences. We show that the Ipatov sequences are a subset of the Games sequences. Further, we show that a conjecture of Games relating to quadrics in projective spaces does not hold in general.     

The topology of surface mediatrices

Given a pair of distinct points p and q in a metric space with distance d, the mediatrix is the set of points x such that d(x,p)=d(x,q). In this paper, we examine the topological structure of mediatrices in connected, compact, closed 2-manifolds whose distance function is inherited from a Riemannian metric. We determine that such mediatrices are, up to homeomorphism, finite, closed simplicial 1-complexes with an even number of incipient edges emanating from each vertex. Using this and results from [J.J.P. Veerman, J. Bernhard, Minimally separating sets, mediatrices and Brillouin spaces, Topology Appl., in press], we give the classification up to homeomorphism of mediatrices on genus 1 tori (and on projective planes) and outline a method which may possibly be used to classify mediatrices on higher-genus surfaces.     

Fano subplanes in finite Figueroa planes

It has been conjectured that all non-desarguesian projective planes contain a Fano subplane. The Figueroa planes are a family of non-translation planes that are defined for both infinite orders and finite order q ³ for q > 2 a prime power. We will show that there is an embedded Fano subplane in the Figueroa plane of order q ³ for q any prime power.     

Cyclic Arcs in PG(2, q)

B.C. Kestenband [9], J.C. Fisher, J.W.P. Hirschfeld, and J.A. Thas [3], E. Boros, and T. Szönyi [1] constructed complete (q ² ? q + l)-arcs in PG(2, q ²), q ≥ 3. One of the interesting properties of these arcs is the fact that they are fixed by a cyclic protective group of order q ² ? q + 1. We investigate the following problem: What are the complete k-arcs in PG(2, q) which are fixed by a cyclic projective group of order k? This article shows that there are essentially three types of those arcs, one of which is the conic in PG(2, q), q odd. For the other two types, concrete examples are given which shows that these types also occur.     

Embeddability of restricted linear spaces

In this note we examine the problem of embedding into finite projective planes finite linear spaces with p points and q lines satisfying (q ? p)² ? p and q ? 2.     

On a conjecture of Brouwer involving the connectivity of strongly regular graphs

In this paper, we study a conjecture of Andries E. Brouwer from 1996 regarding the minimum number of vertices of a strongly regular graph whose removal disconnects the graph into non-singleton components.We show that strongly regular graphs constructed from copolar spaces and from the more general spaces called Δ-spaces are counterexamples to Brouwer?s Conjecture. Using J.I. Hall?s characterization of finite reduced copolar spaces, we find that the triangular graphs T(m), the symplectic graphs Sp(2r,q) over the field Fq (for any q prime power), and the strongly regular graphs constructed from the hyperbolic quadrics O⁺(2r,2) and from the elliptic quadrics O⁻(2r,2) over the field F₂, respectively, are counterexamples to Brouwer?s Conjecture. For each of these graphs, we determine precisely the minimum number of vertices whose removal disconnects the graph into non-singleton components. While we are not aware of an analogue of Hall?s characterization theorem for Δ-spaces, we show that complements of the point graphs of certain finite generalized quadrangles are point graphs of Δ-spaces and thus, yield other counterexamples to Brouwer?s Conjecture.We prove that Brouwer?s Conjecture is true for many families of strongly regular graphs including the conference graphs, the generalized quadrangles GQ(q,q) graphs, the lattice graphs, the Latin square graphs, the strongly regular graphs with smallest eigenvalue −2 (except the triangular graphs) and the primitive strongly regular graphs with at most 30 vertices except for few cases.We leave as an open problem determining the best general lower bound for the minimum size of a disconnecting set of vertices of a strongly regular graph, whose removal disconnects the graph into non-singleton components.     

Set-theoretic complete intersection monomial curves in $${\mathbb{P}^n}$$

In this paper, we give a sufficient numerical criterion for a monomial curve in a projective space to be a set-theoretic complete intersection. Our main result generalizes a similar statement proven by Keum for monomial curves in three-dimensional projective space. We also prove that there are infinitely many set-theoretic complete intersection monomial curves in the projective n?space for any suitably chosen n ? 1 integers. In particular, for any positive integers p, q, where gcd(p, q) = 1, the monomial curve defined by p, q, r is a set-theoretic complete intersection for every \({r \geq pq( q - 1)}\).     

Strong q-convexity in uniform neighborhoods of subvarieties in coverings of complex spaces

The main result is that, for any projective compact analytic subset Y of dimension q > 0 in a reduced complex space X, there is a neighborhood Ω of Y such that, for any covering space ${\Upsilon\colon\widehat X\to X}The main result is that, for any projective compact analytic subset Y of dimension q > 0 in a reduced complex space X, there is a neighborhood Ω of Y such that, for any covering space U\colon[^(X)]? X{\Upsilon\colon\widehat X\to X} in which [^(Y)] o U^-1(Y){\widehat Y\equiv\Upsilon^{-1}(Y)} has no noncompact connected analytic subsets of pure dimension q with only compact irreducible components, there exists a C ^∞ exhaustion function j{\varphi} on [^(X)]{\widehat X} which is strongly q-convex on [^(W)]=U^-1(W){\widehat\Omega=\Upsilon^{-1}(\Omega)} outside a uniform neighborhood of the q-dimensional compact irreducible components of [^(Y)]{\widehat Y}.     

Matrix Maps of Quasi-Convex Null Sequences

In [7] Stieglitz and Tietz identify the space q ^α of all quasi-convex convergent sequences as a BK-space. They characterize all infinite matrices which map q ^α into an arbitrary FK-space. In [6] they do so for matrices which map a particular class of sequence spaces into q ^α . In [10] Zygmund introduces q ² in connexion with convergence factors of Fourier series. Dawson considers in [3] and [4] matrix maps of the space q ₀ ^α of all quasi-convex null sequences. In Section 2 we characterize all matrices which map q ₀ ^α into an arbitrary FK-space. Prior to that, a particular matrix map on q ₀ ^α gives us the BK-topology on q ₀ ^α . As an application we characterize in Section 3 the matrices which map q ₀ ^α into the FK-spaces considered by Stieglitz and Tietz in [8]. Based on [6], we determine the matrices which map these spaces into q ₀ ^α . Using methods similar to those in [7] our results in Section 2 depend on Theorems 2.1 and 4.1 in [5] due to Jakimovski and Livne. Theorem 2.1 gives for suitable pairs of sequence spaces necessary and sufficient conditions for an infinite matrix to map one space into the second one. In Theorem 4.1 a special sequence which is useful in applications of quasi-convexity is constructed. We close our paper with two remarks concerning three results in [8].