Level: MSci, MSc
Title: The Suzuki groups
Supervisor:

Prof. Rob Wilson
Research Area: Algebra
Description:

The Suzuki groups are one of the families of finite simple groups, discovered by Suzuki around 1959. There are some recent simplified constructions, described in various links from my homepage, which are accessible to anyone with a good understanding of undergraduate-level linear algebra and group theory. The project would involve reading these sources, and explaining them in your own words, with all the omitted details filled in. A comparison of the different sources could be given, and perhaps, if time permits, also comparison with other constructions in the literature: the original construction by Suzuki, constructions in books by Taylor, Huppert and Blackburn, Geck, etc (though this is probably too ambitious).
Further Reading:
  • R. A. Wilson, A new approach to the Suzuki groups, Math. Proc. Cambridge Philos. Soc. 48 (2010) 87–91 [preprint as pdf-file]. 
  • R. A. Wilson, Lecture(s) on the Suzuki groups.
  • R. A. Wilson, The Finite Simple Groups. Springer, New York, 2009.
Key Modules:

MTH5100 Algebraic Structures I

MTH6104 Algebraic Structures II
Other Information:
Current Availability: Yes