On modules of finite upper rank

For a group and a prime , the upper -rank of is the supremum of the sectional -ranks of all finite quotients of . It is unknown whether, for a finitely generated group , these numbers can be finite but unbounded as ranges over all primes. The conjecture that this cannot happen if is soluble is reduced to an analogous `relative' conjecture about the upper -ranks of a `quasi-finitely-generated' module for a soluble minimax group . The main result establishes a special case of this relative conjecture, namely when the module is finitely generated and the minimax group is abelian-by-polycyclic. The proof depends on generalising results of Roseblade on group rings of polycyclic groups to group rings of soluble minimax groups. (If true in general, the above-stated conjecture would imply the truth of Lubotzky's `Gap Conjecture' for subgroup growth, in the case of soluble groups; the Gap Conjecture is known to be false for non-soluble groups.)