Department of Mathematics, University of Wuppertal, D-42097 Wuppertal, Germany
Abstract:
Let be a finite -group which does not contain a rank two elementary abelian -group as a direct factor. Then the ideal of essential classes in the mod- cohomology ring of is a Cohen-Macaulay module whose Krull dimension is the -rank of the centre of . This basically answers in the affirmative a question posed by J. F. Carlson (Question 5.4 in Problems in the calculation of group cohomology, 1999).