Lectures On Profinite Topics In Group Theory

In this book, three authors introduce readers to strong approximation methods, analytic pro-p groups and zeta functions of groups. Each chapter illustrates connections between infinite group theory, number theory and Lie theory. The first introduces the theory of compact p-adic Lie groups. The second explains how methods from linear algebraic groups can be utilised to study the finite images of linear groups. The final chapter provides an overview of zeta functions associated to groups and rings. Derived from an LMS/EPSRC Short Course for graduate students, this book provides a concise introduction to a very active research area and assumes less prior knowledge than existing monographs or original research articles. Accessible to beginning graduate students in group theory, it will also appeal to researchers interested in infinite group theory and its interface with Lie theory and number theory.

'In this book, three authors introduce readers to strong approximation methods, analytic pro-p groups and zeta functions of groups. Each chapter illustrates connections between infinite group theory, number theory and Lie theory. The first introduces the theory of compact p-adic Lie groups. The second explains how methods from linear algebraic groups can be utilised to study the finite images of linear groups. Derived from an LMS/EPSRC Short Course for graduate students, this book provides a concise introduction to a very active research area and assumes less prior knowledge than existing monographs or original research articles. Accessible to beginning graduate students in group theory, it will also appeal to researchers interested in infinite group theory and its interface with Lie theory and number theory.'

An introduction to three key aspects of current research in infinite group theory, suitable for graduate students.

This is the first book to be dedicated entirely to profinite groups, an area of algebra with important links to number theory and other areas of mathematics. It provides a comprehensive overview of the subject; prerequisite knowledge is kept to a minimum, and several major theorems are presented in an accessible form. The book would provide a valuable introduction for postgraduate students, or form a useful reference for researchers in other areas. The first few chapters lay the foundations and explain the role of profinite groups in number theory. Later chapters explore various aspects of profinite groups in more detail; these contain accessible and lucid accounts of many major theorems. Prerequisites are kept to a minimum with the basic topological theory summarized in an introductory chapter.

Symington's almost toric fibrations have played a central role in symplectic geometry over the past decade, from Vianna's discovery of exotic Lagrangian tori to recent work on Fibonacci staircases. Four-dimensional spaces are of relevance in Hamiltonian dynamics, algebraic geometry, and mathematical string theory, and these fibrations encode the geometry of a symplectic 4-manifold in a simple 2-dimensional diagram. This text is a guide to interpreting these diagrams, aimed at graduate students and researchers in geometry and topology. First the theory is developed, and then studied in many examples, including fillings of lens spaces, resolutions of cusp singularities, non-toric blow-ups, and Vianna tori. In addition to the many examples, students will appreciate the exercises with full solutions throughout the text. The appendices explore select topics in more depth, including tropical Lagrangians and Markov triples, with a final appendix listing open problems. Prerequisites include familiarity with algebraic topology and differential geometry.

This accessible introduction for Ph.D. students and non-specialists provides Quillen's unique development of cyclic theory.

This book offers an original account of the theory of near-rings, with a considerable amount of material which has not previously been available in book form, some of it completely new. The book begins with an introduction to the subject and goes on to consider the theory of near-fields, transformation near-rings and near-rings hosted by a group. The bulk of the chapter on near-fields has not previously been available in English. The transformation near-rings chapters considerably augment existing knowledge and the chapters on product hosting are essentially new. Other chapters contain original material on new classes of near-rings and non-abelian group cohomology. The Theory of Near-Rings will be of interest to researchers in the subject and, more broadly, ring and representation theorists. The presentation is elementary and self-contained, with the necessary background in group and ring theory available in standard references.

A comprehensive treatment of block theory, emphasising cornerstones of the area which have not appeared in any book before.