Related papers: Derangements in Cosets of Primitive Permutation Gr…
We investigate the proportion of fixed point free permutations (derangements) in finite transitive permutation groups. This article is the first in a series where we prove a conjecture of Shalev that the proportion of such elements is…
Let $G$ be a subgroup of the symmetric group $S_n$. If the proportion of fixed-point-free elements in $G$ (or a coset) equals the proportion of fixed-point-free elements in $S_n$, then $G=S_n$. The analogue for $A_n$ holds if $n \ge 7$. We…
This is the third in a series of papers in which we prove a conjecture of Boston and Shalev that the proportion of derangements (fixed point free elements) is bounded away from zero for transitive actions of finite simple groups on a set of…
A quasi-semiregular element in a permutation group is an element that has a unique fixed point and acts semiregularly on the remaining points. Such elements were first studied in the context of automorphisms of graphs and occur naturally in…
We classify all infinite primitive permutation groups possessing a finite point stabilizer, thus extending the seminal Aschbacher-O'Nan-Scott Theorem to all primitive permutation groups with finite point stabilizers.
Let $G$ be a transitive permutation group on a finite set of size at least $2$. By a well known theorem of Fein, Kantor and Schacher, $G$ contains a derangement of prime power order. In this paper, we study the finite primitive permutation…
In earlier work we gave a characterisation of pregeometries which are `basic' (that is, admit no `non-degenerate' quotients) relative to two different kinds of quotient operations, namely imprimitive quotients and normal quotients. Each…
Various descending chains of subgroups of a finite permutation group can be used to define a sequence of `basic' permutation groups that are analogues of composition factors for abstract finite groups. Primitive groups have been the…
We prove that if $G$ is a transitive permutation group of sufficiently large degree $n$, then either $G$ is primitive and Frobenius, or the proportion of derangements in $G$ is larger than $1/(2n^{1/2})$. This is sharp, generalizes…
Let $G$ be a nontrivial transitive permutation group on a finite set $\Omega$. An element of $G$ is said to be a derangement if it has no fixed points on $\Omega$. From the orbit counting lemma, it follows that $G$ contains a derangement,…
Let $G \leqslant {\rm Sym}(\Omega)$ be a finite transitive permutation group and recall that an element in $G$ is a derangement if it has no fixed points on $\Omega$. Let $\Delta(G)$ be the set of derangements in $G$ and define $\delta(G) =…
A coset geometry representation of regular dessins is established, and employed to describe quotients and coverings of regular dessins and surfaces. A characterization is then given of face-quasiprimitive regular dessins as coverings of…
The purpose of this note is to extend the classical Aschbacher--O'Nan--Scott theorem for finite groups to the class of countable linear groups. This relies on the analysis of primitive actions carried out in a previous paper. Unlike the…
We introduce the notion of primitive elements in arbitrary truncated $p$-divisible groups. By design, the scheme of primitive elements is finite and locally free over the base. Primitive elements generalize the "points of exact order $N$,"…
Fixed point ratios for primitive permutation groups have been extensively studied. Relying on a recent work of Burness and Guralnick, we obtain further results in the area. For a prime $p$ and a finite group $G$, we use fixed point ratios…
For those deformations that satisfy a certain non-degeneracy condition, we describe the structure of certain simple modules of the deformations of the subcharacter algebra of a finite group. For finite abelian groups, we prove that the…
It is known that if the derangements subgroup of a transitive non-regular permutation group is a proper subgroup, then it is a Frobenius--Wielandt kernel, and, conversely, minimal Frobenius--Wielandt kernels are proper derangements…
In recent years there has been significant progress in the study of products of subsets of finite groups and of finite simple groups in particular. In this paper we consider which families of finite simple groups $G$ have the property that…
Let $G$ be a transitive permutation group acting on a finite set $\Omega$ with $|\Omega|\geqslant 2$. An element of $G$ is said to be a derangement if it has no fixed points on $\Omega$, and by a theorem of Jordan from 1872, $G$ always…
A proof of freeness of the commutator subgroup of the fundamental group of a smooth irreducible affine curve over a countable algebraically closed field of nonzero characteristic. A description of the abelianizations of the fundamental…