Abstract:
For a 2-step Carnot group
$\Bbb D_n,$$\dim\Bbb D_n=n+1,$ with horizontal distribution of corank 1, we proved that the minimal number $N_{\mathcal{X}_{\Bbb D_n}}$ such that any two points $u,v\in\Bbb D_n$ can be joined by some basis horizontal $k$-broken line (i.e. a broken line consisting of $k$ links) $L^{\mathcal{X}_{\Bbb D_n}}_k(u,v),$$k\leq N_{\mathcal{X}_{\Bbb D_n}},$ does not exeed $n+2.$ The examples of $\Bbb D_n$ such that $N_{\mathcal{X}_{\Bbb D_n}}=n+i,$$i=1,2,$ were found.
Here $\mathcal{X}_{\Bbb D_n}=\{X_1,\ldots,X_n\}$ is the set of left invariant basis horizontal vector fields of the Lie algebra of the group $\Bbb D_n,$ and every link of $L^{\mathcal{X}_{\Bbb D_n}}_k(u,v)$ has the form $\exp(asX_i)(w),$$s\in[0,s_0],$$a=const.$