The soluble radical and orbits of certain maps on finite groups

Abstract

For each element $u$ in a finite group $G$ define a map $\theta_u\colon G\to G$ by $\theta_u(g)=[g^{-u},g]$ and set $\Theta_G(u)=\{g\in G\mid \theta_u^n(g)=g \hbox{ for some } n>0\}$. Then $\theta_u$ induces a permutation of $\Theta_G(u)$; let $\beta_G(u)$ be the number of orbits apart from $\{1\}$. Building on work of J.N. Bray, R.A. Wilson and the second author, we show that the index of the soluble radical of a finite group $G$ is bounded in terms of the values of $\beta_G(u)$ for $2$-elements $u$.