Related papers: The classification of almost simple $\tfrac{3}{2}$…

In this article, we study $2$-designs with prime replication number admitting a flag-transitive automorphism group. The automorphism groups of these designs are point-primitive of almost simple or affine type. We determine $2$-designs with…

We construct simple sharply 2-transitive groups. Our result answers an open question of Peter Neumann. In fact, we prove that every sharply 2-transitive group of characteristic 0 embeds into a simple sharply 2-transitive group.

We study lines through the origin of finite-dimensional complex vector spaces that enjoy a doubly transitive automorphism group. This paper classifies those lines that exhibit almost simple symmetries. We introduce a general recipe…

In this paper, we study intersecting sets in primitive and quasiprimitive permutation groups. Let $G \leqslant \mathrm{Sym}(\Omega)$ be a transitive permutation group, and ${S}$ an intersecting set. Previous results show that if $G$ is…

A permutation group is called semiprimitive if each of its normal subgroups is either transitive or semiregular. Given nontrivial finite transitive permutation groups $L_1$ and $L_2$ with $L_1$ not semiprimitive, we construct an infinite…

A semiregular permutation group on a set $\Ome$ is called {\em bi-regular} if it has two orbits. A classification is given of quasiprimitive permutation groups with a biregular dihedral subgroup. This is then used to characterize the family…

Let G be a finite solvable permutation group. Then modulo a possibly trivial normal elementary abelian 3-subgroup, some set-stabilizer in G is a 2-group.

The famous Burnside-Schur theorem states that every primitive finite permutation group containing a regular cyclic subgroup is either 2-transitive or isomorphic to a subgroup of a 1-dimensional affine group of prime degree. It is known that…

An action of a group $G$ on a set $X$ is said to be quasi-n-transitive if the diagonal action of $G$ on $X^n$ has only finitely many orbits. We show that branch groups, a special class of groups of automorphisms of rooted trees, cannot act…

Let $X$ be a finite set such that $|X|=n$, and let $k< n/2$. A group is $k$-homogeneous if it has only one orbit on the sets of size $k$. The aim of this paper is to prove some general results on permutation groups and then apply them to…

We give a group theoretic proof of the splitting of sharply 2-transitive groups of characteristic 3.

This paper contains the more significant part of the article with the same title that will appear in the Volume 12 of Journal of Group Theory (2009). In this paper we determine all algebraic transformation groups $G$, defined over an…

A vertex triple $(u,v,w)$ of a graph is called a $2$-geodesic if $v$ is adjacent to both $u$ and $w$ and $u$ is not adjacent to $w$. A graph is said to be $2$-geodesic transitive if its automorphism group is transitive on the set of…

We say that a finite almost simple $G$ with socle $S$ is admissible (with respect to the spectrum) if $G$ and $S$ have the same sets of orders of elements. Let $L$ be a finite simple linear or unitary group of dimension at least three over…

A classification is given for factorizations of almost simple groups with at least one factor solvable, and it is then applied to characterize $s$-arc-transitive Cayley graphs of solvable groups, leading to a striking corollary: Except the…

We say that a class of finite structures for a finite first-order signature is $r$-compressible if each structure $G$ in the class has a first-order description of size at most $O(r(|G|))$. We show that the class of finite simple groups is…

The motion of a graph is the minimum number of vertices that are moved by a non-trivial automorphism. Equivalently, it can be defined as the minimal degree of its automorphism group (as a permutation group on the vertices). In this paper we…

Let $G$ be a permutation group on a finite set $\Omega$. The $k$-closure $G^{(k)}$ of the group $G$ is the largest subgroup of $\operatorname{Sym}(\Omega)$ having the same orbits as $G$ on the $k$-th Cartesian power $\Omega^k$ of $\Omega$.…

The primitive finite permutation groups containing a cycle are classified. Of these, only the alternating and symmetric groups contain a cycle fixing at least three points. The contributions of Jordan and Marggraff to this topic are briefly…

This paper is devoted to the classification of flag-transitive 2-(v,k,2) designs. We show that apart from two known symmetric 2-(16,6,2) designs, every flag-transitive subgroup G of the automorphism group of a nontrivial 2-(v,k,2) design is…