On capability of finite abelian groups

Baer characterized capable finite abelian groups (a group is capable if it is isomorphic to the group of inner automorphisms of some group) by a condition on the size of the factors in the invariant factor decomposition (the group must be noncyclic and the top two invariant factors must be equal). We provide a different characterization, given in terms of a condition on the lattice of subgroups. Namely, a finite abelian group G is capable if and only if there exists a family {H _i } of subgroups of G with trivial intersection, such that the union generates G and all quotients G/H _i have the same exponent. Other variations of this condition are also provided (for instance, the condition that the union generates G can be replaced by the condition that it is equal to G). The work presented here is partially supported by NSF/DMS-0805932.