Group Theory Name
MAP351 Sheet 2 Number
Hand in by Feb 24th Year
Mark: /10
date marked: / /2010
Please attach your working, with this sheet at the front.
1. If x = (12)(34) and y = (42)(15) in S5 , determine z such that zxz −1 = y.
How many such z’s are there? [2 Marks]
2. (i) If x = (123) in S4 , determine all z such that zxz −1 = x. (i.e. commute
with x) (ii) If x = (123) and y = (142), determine all w such that wxw−1 = y.
[2 Marks]
3. In D6 = hx, y : x6 = y 2 = e, yx = x−1 yi, determine the conjugacy classes
of x4 and of xy. [3 Marks]
4. Here is the multiplication table for a group of order 16.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16
1 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16
2 2 3 4 1 6 7 8 5 10 11 12 9 14 15 16 13
3 3 4 1 2 7 8 5 6 11 12 9 10 15 16 13 14
4 4 1 2 3 8 5 6 7 12 9 10 11 16 13 14 15
5 5 6 7 8 1 2 3 4 13 14 15 16 9 10 11 12
6 6 7 8 5 2 3 4 1 14 15 16 13 10 11 12 9
7 7 8 5 6 3 4 1 2 15 16 13 14 11 12 9 10
8 8 5 6 7 4 1 2 3 16 13 14 15 12 9 10 11
9 9 12 11 10 13 16 15 14 5 8 7 6 1 4 3 2
10 10 9 12 11 14 13 16 15 6 5 8 7 2 1 4 3
11 11 10 9 12 15 14 13 16 7 6 5 8 3 2 1 4
12 12 11 10 9 16 15 14 13 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
13 13 16 15 14 9 12 11 10 1 4 3 2 5 8 7 6
14 14 13 16 15 10 9 12 11 2 1 4 3 6 5 8 7
15 15 14 13 16 11 10 9 12 3 2 1 4 7 6 5 8
16 16 15 14 13 12 11 10 9 4 3 2 1 8 7 6 5
If a · b means the element in row a and column b, determine the products
6 · 7 · 8 and 6−1 · 7 · 6. What are the orders of the elements? Determine the
conjugacy classes. What is the centre? [3 Marks]
MAP351 Group Theory Ex Sheet 2.
Solutions
1. Many answers e.g. as written we get (1453). Rewriting y as (24)(15),
we get z = (12453).
The conjugacy class containing x has 5 C2 .3 C2 /2 = 15. Therefore each
element in the class is repeated 5!/15 =8 times. Thus there are 8 such z.
2. i) If x = (123) in S4 , we know that all powers of x commute with x.
These are e, (123), (132). Now since (123) has 8 elements in its conjugacy class,
the centraliser of x must have order 3, and so these are the only elements that
commute with x.
ii) If x = (123) and y = (142), from above, exactly three elements will work
(a coset of the centraliser of x.) These are (243), (143), and (12)(34).
3. D6 = {e, x, x2 , x3 , x4 , x5 , y, xy, x2 y, x3 y, x4 y, x5 y},
yx4 y −1 = x−4 = x2 , so x4 and x2 are conjugate. These are the only elements
of order 3, so [x4 ] = {x4 , x2 }.
x(xy)x−1 = x2 (yx−1 ) = x2 (xy) = x3 y and x2 (xy)x−2 = x3 (yx−2 = x3 (x2 y) =
x y, so there are at least three elements in [xy]. But xy, x3 , x4 y commute with
5
xy, so |Cent(x)| ≥ 4. Therefore [xy] = {xy, x3 y, x5 y}.
4. 6.7.8 = 4.8 = 7 and 6−1 .7.6 = 7.
orders: 3, 5, 7 have 1 on their diagonal so they have order 2.
the rest have 3 or 5 on the diagonal so have order 4.
Centre is {1, 3, 5, 7}.
Conjugacy classes {1}, {3}, {5}, {7}, {2, 4}, {6,8}, {9,11}, {10, 12},
{13,15} and {14, 16}.
–2–
