The complexity of intersecting subproducts with subgroups in Cartesian powers

Abstract

Given a finite abelian group $G$ and $t\in \mathbb{N}$, there are two natural types of subsets of the Cartesian power $G^t$; namely, Cartesian powers $S^t$ where $S$ is a subset of $G$, and (cosets of) subgroups $H$ of $G^t$. A basic question is whether two such sets intersect. In this paper, we show that this decision problem is NP-complete. Furthermore, for fixed $G$ and $S$ we give a complete classification: we determine conditions for when the problem is NP-complete, and show that in all other cases the problem is solvable in polynomial time. These theorems play a key role in the classification of algebraic decision problems in finitely generated rings developed in [Spe21].