Dempwolff group

In mathematical finite group theory, the Dempwolff group is a finite group of order 319979520 = 2¹⁵·3²·5·7·31, that is the unique nonsplit extension 2⁵·GL₅(F₂) of GL₅(F₂) by its natural module of order 2⁵. The uniqueness of such a nonsplit extension was shown by Dempwolff (1972), and the existence by Thompson (1976), who showed using some computer calculations of Smith (1976) that the Dempwolff group is contained in the compact Lie group E₈ as the subgroup fixing a certain lattice in the Lie algebra of E₈, and is also contained in the Thompson sporadic group (the full automorphism group of this lattice) as a maximal subgroup.

Huppert (1967, p.124) showed that that any extension of GL_n(F_q) by its natural module Fn
q splits if q > 2, and Dempwolff (1973) showed that it also splits if n is not 3, 4, or 5, and in each of these three cases there is just one non-split extension. These three nonsplit extensions can be constructed as follows:

• The nonsplit extension 2³·GL₃(F₂) is a maximal subgroup of the Chevalley group G₂(F₃).
• The nonsplit extension 2⁴·GL₄(F₂) is a maximal subgroup of the sporadic Conway group Co₃.
• The nonsplit extension 2⁵·GL₅(F₂) is a maximal subgroup of the Thompson sporadic group Th.

References

• Dempwolff, Ulrich (1972), "On extensions of an elementary abelian group of order 2⁵ by GL(5,2)", Rendiconti del Seminario Matematico della Università di Padova. The Mathematical Journal of the University of Padova 48: 359–364, ISSN 0041-8994, MR0393276, http://www.numdam.org/item?id=RSMUP_1972__48__359_0 
• Dempwolff, Ulrich (1973), "On the second cohomology of GL(n,2)", Australian Mathematical Society. Journal. Series A. Pure Mathematics and Statistics 16: 207–209, doi:10.1017/S1446788700014221, ISSN 0263-6115, MR0357639 
• Griess, Robert L. (1976), "On a subgroup of order 2¹⁵ . ¦GL(5,2)¦ in E₈(C), the Dempwolff group and Aut(D₈°D₈°D₈)", Journal of Algebra 40 (1): 271–279, doi:10.1016/0021-8693(76)90097-1, ISSN 0021-8693, MR0407149 
• Huppert, Bertram (1967) (in German), Endliche Gruppen, Berlin, New York: Springer-Verlag, ISBN 978-3-540-03825-2, MR0224703, OCLC 527050 
• Smith, P. E. (1976), "A simple subgroup of M? and E₈(3)", The Bulletin of the London Mathematical Society 8 (2): 161–165, doi:10.1112/blms/8.2.161, ISSN 0024-6093, MR0409630 
• Thompson, John G. (1976), "A conjugacy theorem for E₈", Journal of Algebra 38 (2): 525–530, doi:10.1016/0021-8693(76)90235-0, ISSN 0021-8693, MR0399193 

External links

• Dempwolff group at the atlas of groups.