Abelian p-groups with minimal characteristic inertia

Abstract

For Abelian p-groups, Goldsmith, Salce, et al., introduced the notion of minimal full inertia. In parallel to this, we define the concept of minimal characteristic inertia and explore those p-primary Abelian groups having minimal characteristic inertia. We establish the surprising result that, for each Abelian p-group A, the square A \oplus A has the minimal characteristic inertia if, and only if, it has the minimal full inertia. We also obtain some other relationships between these two properties. Specifically, we exhibit groups which do not have neither of the properties, as well as we show via a concrete complicated construction from ring/module theory that, for any prime p, there is a p-group possessing the minimal characteristic inertia which does not possess the minimal full inertia.