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Structure of a Conjugating Automorphism Group
V. G. Bardakov Sobolev Institute of Mathematics, Siberian Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences
Abstract:
We examine the automorphism group
${\rm Aut}(F_n)$ of a free group
$F_n$ of rank
$n\geqslant 2$ on free generators
$x_1,x_2,\ldots,x_n$. It is known that
${\rm Aut}(F_2)$ can be built from cyclic subgroups using a free and semidirect product. A question remains open as to whether this result can be extended to the case
$n>2$. Every automorphism of
${\rm Aut}(F_n)$ sending a generator
$x_i$ to an element
$f_i^{-1}x_{\pi(i)}f_i$, where
$f_i\in F_n$ and
$\pi$ is some permutation on a symmetric group
$S_n$, is called a conjugating automorphism. The conjugating automorphism group is denoted
$C_n$. A set of automorphisms for which
$\pi$ is the identity permutation form a basis-conjugating automorphism group, denoted
$Cb_n$. It is proved that
$Cb_n$ can be factored into a semidirect product of some groups.
As a consequence we obtain a normal form for words in
$C_n$. For
$n\geqslant 4$,
$C_n$ and
$Cb_n$ have an undecidable occurrence problem in finitely generated subgroups. It is also shown that
$C_n$,
$n\geqslant 2$, is generated by at most four elements, and we find its respective genetic code, and that
$Cb_n$,
$n\geqslant 2$, has no proper verbal subgroups of finite width.
Keywords:
conjugating automorphism group, basis-conjugating automorphism group, occurrence problem in finitely generated subgroups, factorization of a group into a semidirect product.
UDC:
512.54 Received: 07.12.2001