English

On zero-sum free sequences contained in random subsets of finite cyclic groups

Combinatorics 2024-09-04 v1 Number Theory

Abstract

Let CnC_n be a cyclic group of order nn. A sequence SS of length \ell over CnC_n is a sequence S=a1a2aS = a_1\boldsymbol\cdot a_2\boldsymbol\cdot \ldots\boldsymbol\cdot a_{\ell} of \ell elements in CnC_n, where a repetition of elements is allowed and their order is disregarded. We say that SS is a zero-sum sequence if Σi=1ai=0\Sigma_{i=1}^{\ell} a_i = 0 and that SS is a zero-sum free sequence if SS contains no zero-sum subsequence. Let RR be a random subset of CnC_n obtained by choosing each element in CnC_n independently with probability pp. Let Nn1kRN^R_{n-1-k} be the number of zero-sum free sequences of length n1kn-1-k in RR. Also, let Nn1k,dRN^R_{n-1-k,d} be the number of zero-sum free sequences of length n1kn-1-k having dd distinct elements in RR. We obtain the expectation of Nn1kRN^R_{n-1-k} and Nn1k,dRN^R_{n-1-k,d} for 0kn30\leq k\leq \big\lfloor \frac{n}{3} \big\rfloor. We also show a concentration result on Nn1kRN^R_{n-1-k} and Nn1k,dRN^R_{n-1-k,d} when kk is fixed.

Keywords

Cite

@article{arxiv.2003.02511,
  title  = {On zero-sum free sequences contained in random subsets of finite cyclic groups},
  author = {Sang June Lee and Jun Seok Oh},
  journal= {arXiv preprint arXiv:2003.02511},
  year   = {2024}
}

Comments

15 pages

R2 v1 2026-06-23T14:04:44.775Z