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JOURNALS // Algebra i logika // Archive

Algebra Logika, 2003 Volume 42, Number 5, Pages 515–541 (Mi al42)

This article is cited in 21 papers

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


 English version:
Algebra and Logic, 2003, 42:5, 287–303

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