Ghost numbers of Group Algebras

Motivated by Freyd's famous unsolved problem in stable homotopy theory, the generating hypothesis for the stable module category of a finite group is the statement that if a map in the thick subcategory generated by the trivial representation induces the zero map in Tate cohomology, then it is stably trivial. It is known that the generating hypothesis fails for most groups. Generalizing work done for $p$-groups, we define the ghost number of a group algebra, which is a natural number that measures the degree to which the generating hypothesis fails. We describe a close relationship between ghost numbers and Auslander-Reiten triangles, with many results stated for a general projective class in a general triangulated category. We then compute ghost numbers and bounds on ghost numbers for many families of $p$-groups, including abelian $p$-groups, the quaternion group and dihedral $2$-groups, and also give a general lower bound in terms of the radical length, the first general lower bound that we are aware of. We conclude with a classification of group algebras of $p$-groups with small ghost number and examples of gaps in the possible ghost numbers of such group algebras.Comment: 28 pages; v2 improves introduction and has many other minor changes throughout. appears in Algebras and Representation Theory, 201

Groups which do not admit ghosts

A ghost in the stable module category of a group G is a map between representations of G that is invisible to Tate cohomology. We show that the only non-trivial finite p-groups whose stable module categories have no non-trivial ghosts are the cyclic groups of order 2 and 3. We compare this to the situation in the derived category of a commutative ring. We also determine for which groups G the second power of the Jacobson radical of kG is stably isomorphic to a suspension of k.Comment: 9 pages, improved exposition and fixed several typos, to appear in the Proceedings of the AM

Politiets forebyggende arbeid mot utelivsvold : en teoretisk oppgave

Bachelor i politiutdannin

Phantom maps and chromatic phantom maps

In the first part, we determine conditions on spectra X and Y under which either every map from X to Y is phantom, or no nonzero maps are. We also address the question of whether such all or nothing behaviour is preserved when X is replaced with V smash X for V finite. In the second part, we introduce chromatic phantom maps. A map is n-phantom if it is null when restricted to finite spectra of type at least n. We define divisibility and finite type conditions which are suitable for studying n-phantom maps. We show that the duality functor W_{n-1} defined by Mahowald and Rezk is the analog of Brown-Comenetz duality for chromatic phantom maps, and give conditions under which the natural map Y --> W_{n-1}^2 Y is an isomorphism.Comment: 18 page

Higher Toda brackets and the Adams spectral sequence in triangulated categories

The Adams spectral sequence is available in any triangulated category equipped with a projective or injective class. Higher Toda brackets can also be defined in a triangulated category, as observed by B. Shipley based on J. Cohen's approach for spectra. We provide a family of definitions of higher Toda brackets, show that they are equivalent to Shipley's, and show that they are self-dual. Our main result is that the Adams differential $d_r$ in any Adams spectral sequence can be expressed as an $(r+1)$-fold Toda bracket and as an $r^{\text{th}}$ order cohomology operation. We also show how the result simplifies under a sparseness assumption, discuss several examples, and give an elementary proof of a result of Heller, which implies that the three-fold Toda brackets in principle determine the higher Toda brackets.Comment: v2: Added Section 7, about an application to computing maps between modules over certain ring spectra. Minor improvements elsewhere. v3: Minor updates throughout; closely matches published versio