On the existence of semifields of prime power order admitting free automorphism groups

The purpose of this paper is to prove the existence of semifields of order q ⁴ for any odd prime power q = p^r, q > 3, admitting a free automorphism group isomorphic to Z ₂ × Z ₂.     

A class of semifields of order q4

This paper gives a class of semifields of order q⁴ for any prime power q = p^r with p greater than 3. It is shown that this class has left nucleus GF(q²), and right and middle nucleus GF(q). Although it is not proved, it is believed that all the semifields in this class are new.Supported in part by NSF     

Fractional dimensions in semifields of odd order

A finite semifield D is considered a fractional dimensional semifield if it contains a subsemifield E such that λ := log_|E||D| is not an integer. We develop spread-theoretic tools to determine when finite planes admit coordinatization by fractional semifields, and to find such semifields when they exist. We use our results to show that such semifields exist for prime powers 3 ⁿ whenever n is an odd integer divisible by 5 or 7.     

On a generalization of cyclic semifields

A new construction is given of cyclic semifields of orders q ²ⁿ , n odd, with kernel (left nucleus) and right and middle nuclei isomorphic to , and the isotopism classes are determined. Furthermore, this construction is generalized to produce potentially new semifields of the same general type that are not isotopic to cyclic semifields. In particular, a new semifield plane of order 4⁵ and new semifield planes of order 16⁵ are constructed by this method.     

On the Existence of a Noninner Automorphism of Order p for p-Groups

We obtain sufficient conditions for the existence of a noninner automorphism of order p for finite p-groups. We show that groups of order p ⁿ (n < 7, p is a prime number, p > 3) possess a noninner automorphism of order p.     

Automorphisms of prime order of smooth cubic <Emphasis Type="Italic">n</Emphasis>-folds

In this paper we give an effective criterion as to when a prime number p is the order of an automorphism of a smooth cubic hypersurface of \({\mathbb{P}^{n+1}}\), for a fixed n ≥ 2. We also provide a computational method to classify all such hypersurfaces that admit an automorphism of prime order p. In particular, we show that p < 2 ⁿ⁺¹ and that any such hypersurface admitting an automorphism of order p > 2 ⁿ is isomorphic to the Klein n-fold. We apply our method to compute exhaustive lists of automorphism of prime order of smooth cubic threefolds and fourfolds. Finally, we provide an application to the moduli space of principally polarized abelian varieties.     

w-Divisoriality in Polynomial Rings

We characterize all finite p-groups G of order p ⁿ (n ≤ 6), where p is a prime for n ≤ 5 and an odd prime for n = 6, such that the center of the inner automorphism group of G is equal to the group of central automorphisms of G.     

Some new symmetric designs

For q, an odd prime power, we construct symmetric (2q²+2q+1,q²,½q(q-1)) designs having an automorphism group of order q that fixes 2q+1 points. The construction indicates that for each q the number of such designs that are pairwise non-isomorphic is very large.     

On binary self-dual codes of lengths 60, 62, 64 and 66 having an automorphism of order 9

A method for constructing binary self-dual codes having an automorphism of order p ² for an odd prime p is presented in (S. Bouyuklieva et al. IEEE. Trans. Inform. Theory, 51, 3678–3686, 2005). Using this method, we investigate the optimal self-dual codes of lengths 60 ≤ n ≤ 66 having an automorphism of order 9 with six 9-cycles, t cycles of length 3 and f fixed points. We classify all self-dual [60,30,12] and [62,31,12] codes possessing such an automorphism, and we construct many doubly-even [64,32,12] and singly-even [66,33,12] codes. Some of the constructed codes of lengths 62 and 66 are with weight enumerators for which the existence of codes was not known until now.      

The structure of symmetry groups of GK(2n,G)

The automorphism groups of the one-factorizations GK(2n,G) are computed. It is shown that every 1-factorization of K_2n with a subgroup of the automorphism group that acts sharply 2-transitively on the one-factors must be GK(p^m + 1, (Z_p)^m) for some odd prime p. © 1994 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.     

Automorphisms of higher‐dimensional Hadamard matrices

This article derives from first principles a definition of equivalence for higher‐dimensional Hadamard matrices and thereby a definition of the automorphism group for higher‐dimensional Hadamard matrices. Our procedure is quite general and could be applied to other kinds of designs for which there are no established definitions for equivalence or automorphism. Given a two‐dimensional Hadamard matrix H of order ν, there is a Product Construction which gives an order ν proper n‐dimensional Hadamard matrix P⁽ⁿ⁾(H). We apply our ideas to the matrices P⁽ⁿ⁾(H). We prove that there is a constant c > 1 such that any Hadamard matrix H of order ν > 2 gives rise via the Product Construction to cν inequivalent proper three‐dimensional Hadamard matrices of order ν. This corrects an erroneous assertion made in the literature that ”P⁽ⁿ⁾(H) is equivalent to “P⁽ⁿ⁾(H′) whenever H is equivalent to H′.” We also show how the automorphism group of P⁽ⁿ⁾(H) depends on the structure of the automorphism group of H. As an application of the above ideas, we determine the automorphism group of P⁽ⁿ⁾(Hk) when Hk is a Sylvester Hadamard matrix of order 2^k. For ν = 4, we exhibit three distinct families of inequivalent Product Construction matrices P⁽ⁿ⁾(H) where H is equivalent to H₂. These matrices each have large but non‐isomorphic automorphism groups. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Combin Designs 16: 507–544, 2008     

Automorphisms of imbedded graphs

If a linear graph is imbedded in a surface to form a map, then the map has a group of automorphisms which is a subgroup (usually, a proper subgroup) of the automorphism group of the graph. In this note it will be shown that, for any imbedding of K_n in an orientable surface, the order of the automorphism group of the resulting map is a divisor of n(n − 1), and that the order equals n(n − 1) if and only if n is a prime power. The explicit construction of imbeddings of K_Q, q = p^m with map automorphism group of order q(q − 1) gives rise to new types of regular map. There are also tenous connections with the theory of Frobenius groups.     

A Semifield of Order 54 Admitting a Free 4-Group of Automorphisms

The purpose of this article is to give classification of semifields of order 5⁴ admitting a free automorphism group E? z₂ × z₂, and to find their kernels (left nuclei).     

Commutative semifields from projection mappings

We describe a general projection method to construct commutative semifields in odd characteristic. One application yields a family of commutative semifields of order q ^2m with middle nucleus of order at least q ² for every odd prime-power q and every odd integer m > 1. Another application of the method yields a generalization of the Budaghyan–Helleseth family and also greatly simplifies the construction.     

The Order of Automorphisms of Quasigroups

We prove quadratic upper bounds on the order of any autotopism of a quasigroup or Latin square, and hence also on the order of any automorphism of a Steiner triple system or 1‐factorization of a complete graph. A corollary is that a permutation σ chosen uniformly at random from the symmetric group will almost surely not be an automorphism of a Steiner triple system of order n, a quasigroup of order n or a 1‐factorization of the complete graph . Nor will σ be one component of an autotopism for any Latin square of order n. For groups of order n it is known that automorphisms must have order less than n, but we show that quasigroups of order n can have automorphisms of order greater than n. The smallest such quasigroup has order 7034. We also show that quasigroups of prime order can possess autotopisms that consist of three permutations with different cycle structures. Our results answer three questions originally posed by D.  Stones.     

A new semifield of order 2

In [G. Lunardon, Semifields and linear sets of PG(1,q^t), Quad. Mat., Dept. Math., Seconda Univ. Napoli, Caserta (in press)], G. Lunardon has exhibited a construction method yielding a theoretical family of semifields of order q²ⁿ,n>1 and n odd, with left nucleus F_qⁿ, middle and right nuclei both F_q² and center F_q. When n=3 this method gives an alternative construction of a family of semifields described in [N.L. Johnson, G. Marino, O. Polverino, R. Trombetti, On a generalization of cyclic semifields, J. Algebraic Combin. 26 (2009), 1-34], which generalizes the family of cyclic semifields obtained by Jha and Johnson in [V. Jha, N.L. Johnson, Translation planes of large dimension admitting non-solvable groups, J. Geom. 45 (1992), 87-104]. For n>3, no example of a semifield belonging to this family is known.In this paper we first prove that, when n>3, any semifield belonging to the family introduced in the second work cited above is not isotopic to any semifield of the family constructed in the former. Then we construct, with the aid of a computer, a semifield of order 2¹⁰ belonging to the family introduced by Lunardon, which turns out to be non-isotopic to any other known semifield.     

Splitting automorphisms of order p k of free Burnside groups are inner

It is proved that, if the order of a splitting automorphism of odd period n ≥ 1003 of a free Burnside group B(m, n) is equal to a power of some prime, then the automorphism is inner. Thus, an affirmative answer is given to the question concerning the coincidence of the splitting automorphisms of the group B(m, n) with the inner automorphisms for all automorphisms of order p ^k (p is a prime). This question was posed in 1990 in “Kourovka Notebook” (see the 11th edition, Question 11.36.b).     

Sublines of Prime Order Contained in the Set of Internal Points of a Conic

In [2] it was shown that if q ≥ 4n²−8n+2 then there are no subplanes of order q contained in the set of internal points of a conic in PG(2,qⁿ), q odd, n≥ 3. In this article we improve this bound in the case where q is prime to , and prove a stronger theorem by considering sublines instead of subplanes. We also explain how one can apply this result to flocks of a quadratic cone in PG(3,qⁿ), ovoids of Q(4,qⁿ), rank two commutative semifields, and eggs in PG(4n−1,q). AMS Classification:11T06, 05B25, 05E12, 51E15     

More translation planes and semifields from Dembowski–Ostrom polynomials

In this article we use pairs of Dembowski–Ostrom polynomials with special properties (see (P1)–(P3) in the introduction below) to construct translation planes of order q ⁿ which admit cyclic groups of order q ⁿ ?1 having orbits of lengths 1, 1, (q ⁿ ?1)/2, (q ⁿ ?1)/2 on the line at infinity. The same pairs also define semifields of order q ²ⁿ . We discuss the properties of these translation planes and semifields. These constructions extend the related construction in Dempwolff and Müller, Osaka J Math [5].