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Dave Witte Morris

Publications and source records attributed to Dave Witte Morris.

52 records · Page 3Linked to original sources
arXiv2012

Volume-preserving actions of simple algebraic Q-groups on low-dimensional manifolds

We prove that SL(n,Q) has no nontrivial, C-infinity, volume-preserving action on any compact manifold of dimension strictly less than n. More generally, suppose G is a connected, isotropic, almost-simple algebraic group over Q, such that the simple factors of every localization of G have rank at least two. If there does not exist a nontrivial homomorphism from G(R) to GL(d,C), then every C-infinity, volume-preserving action of G(Q) on any compact d-dimensional manifold must factor through a finite group.

math.DS↗
arXiv2011

2-generated Cayley digraphs on nilpotent groups have hamiltonian paths

Suppose G is a nilpotent, finite group. We show that if {a,b} is any 2-element generating set of G, then the corresponding Cayley digraph Cay(G;a,b) has a hamiltonian path. This implies there is a hamiltonian path in every connected Cayley graph on G that has valence at most 4.

math.CO↗
arXiv2011

Cayley graphs of order 27p are hamiltonian

Suppose G is a finite group, such that |G| = 27p, where p is prime. We show that if S is any generating set of G, then there is a hamiltonian cycle in the corresponding Cayley graph Cay(G;S).

math.CO↗
arXiv2011

Cayley graphs of order 16p are hamiltonian

Suppose G is a finite group, such that |G| = 16p, where p is prime. We show that if S is any generating set of G, then there is a hamiltonian cycle in the corresponding Cayley graph Cay(G;S).

math.CO↗
arXiv2009

Amenable groups that act on the line

Let Gamma be a finitely generated, amenable group. Using an idea of E Ghys, we prove that if Gamma has a nontrivial, orientation-preserving action on the real line, then Gamma has an infinite, cyclic quotient. (The converse is obvious.) This implies that if Gamma has a faithful action on the circle, then some finite-index subgroup of Gamma has the property that all of its nontrivial, finitely generated subgroups have infinite, cyclic quotients. It also means that every left-orderable, amenable group is locally indicable. This answers a question of P Linnell.

math.GR↗
arXiv2009

Can lattices in SL(n,R) act on the circle?

This expository paper describes the various methods that have yielded partial results on the conjecture that if n > 2, then no lattice in SL(n,R) has a faithful action on the circle (by homeomorphisms). Topics include amenability, Kazhdan's property (T), bounded cohomology, bounded generation, and the Reeb-Thurston Stability Theorem.

math.RT↗
arXiv2007

What is a superrigid subgroup?

This is an expository paper. It is well known that a linear transformation can be defined to have any desired action on a basis. From this fact, one can show that every group homomorphism from Z^k to R^d extends to a homomorphism from R^k to R^d, and we will see other examples of discrete subgroups H of connected groups G, such that the homomorphisms defined on $H$ can ("almost") be extended to homomorphisms defined on all of G. This is related to a very classical topic in geometry, the study of linkages.

math.HO↗
arXiv2007

Almost-minimal nonuniform lattices of higher rank

If Gamma is a nonuniform, irreducible lattice in a semisimple Lie group whose real rank is greater than 1, we show Gamma contains a subgroup that is isomorphic to a nonuniform, irreducible lattice in either SL(3,R), SL(3,C), or a direct product SL(2,R)^m x SL(2,C)^n$, with m + n > 1. (In geometric terms, this can be interpreted as a statement about the existence of totally geodesic subspaces of finite-volume, noncompact, locally symmetric spaces of higher rank.) Another formulation of the result states that if G is any isotropic, almost simple algebraic group over Q (the rational numbers), such that the real rank of G is greater than 1, then G contains an isotropic, almost simple Q-subgroup H, such that H is quasisplit, and the real rank of H is greater than 1.

math.GR↗
arXiv2007

Bounded generation of SL(n,A) (after D. Carter, G. Keller and E. Paige)

We present unpublished work of D.Carter, G.Keller, and E.Paige on bounded generation in special linear groups. Let n be a positive integer, and let A = O be the ring of integers of an algebraic number field K (or, more generally, let A be a localization O_S.) If n = 2, assume that A has infinitely many units. We show there is a finite-index subgroup H of SL(n,A), such that every matrix in H is a product of a bounded number of elementary matrices. We also show that if T is in SL(n,A), and T is not a scalar matrix, then there is a finite-index, normal subgroup N of SL(n,A), such that every element of N is a product of a bounded number of conjugates of T. For n > 2, these results remain valid when SL(n,A) is replaced by any of its subgroups of finite index.

math.GR↗
arXiv2007

Bounded generation and lattices that cannot act on the line

Let D be an irreducible lattice in a connected, semisimple Lie group G with finite center. Assume that the real rank of G is at least two, that G/D is not compact, and that G has more than one noncompact simple factor. We show that D has no orientation-preserving actions on the real line. (In algebraic terms, this means that D is not right orderable.) Under the additional assumption that no simple factor of G is isogenous to SL(2,R), applying a theorem of E.Ghys yields the conclusion that any orientation-preserving action of D on the circle must factor through a finite, abelian quotient of D. The proof relies on the fact, proved by D.Carter, G.Keller, and E.Paige, that SL(2,A) is boundedly generated by unipotents whenever A is a ring of integers with infinitely many units. The assumption that G has more than one noncompact simple factor can be eliminated if all noncocompact lattices in SL(3,R) and SL(3,C) are virtually boundedly generated by unipotents.

math.GR↗
arXiv2006

Hamiltonian cycles in (2,3,c)-circulant digraphs

Let D be the circulant digraph with n vertices and connection set {2,3,c}. (Assume D is loopless and has outdegree 3.) Work of S.C.Locke and D.Witte implies that if n is a multiple of 6, c is either (n/2) + 2 or (n/2) + 3, and c is even, then D does not have a hamiltonian cycle. For all other cases, we construct a hamiltonian cycle in D.

math.CO↗
arXiv2005

Unipotent flows on the space of branched covers of Veech surfaces

There is a natural action of SL(2,R) on the moduli space of translation surfaces, and this yields an action of the unipotent subgroup $U = {\begin{pmatrix} 1 & * 0 & 1 \end{pmatrix}}$. We classify the U-invariant ergodic measures on certain special submanifolds of the moduli space. (Each submanifold is the SL(2,R)-orbit of the set of branched covers of a fixed Veech surface.) For the U-action on these submanifolds, this is an analogue of Ratner's Theorem on unipotent flows. The result yields an asymptotic estimate of the number of periodic trajectories for billiards in a certain family of non-Veech rational triangles, namely, the isosceles triangles in which exactly one angle is $2 π/n$, with $n \ge 5$ and $n$ odd.

math.DS↗
arXiv2005

Ratner's Theorems on Unipotent Flows

Unipotent flows are well-behaved dynamical systems. In particular, Marina Ratner has shown that the closure of every orbit for such a flow is of a nice algebraic (or geometric) form. After presenting some consequences of this important theorem, these lectures explain the main ideas of the proof. Some algebraic technicalities will be pushed to the background. Chapter 1 is the main part of the book. It is intended for a fairly general audience, and provides an elementary introduction to the subject, by presenting examples that illustrate the theorem, some of its applications, and the main ideas involved in the proof. It should be largely accessible to second-year graduate students. Chapter 2 gives an elementary introduction to the theory of entropy. Chapter 3 presents some basic facts of ergodic theory, and Chapter 4 lists some facts about algebraic groups. Chapter 5 presents a fairly complete (but not entirely rigorous) proof of the measure-theoretic version of Ratner's Theorem. (We follow the approach of G.A.Margulis and G.Tomanov.) Unlike the other chapters, it is rather technical.

math.DS↗
arXiv2004

Divergent torus orbits in homogeneous spaces of Q-rank two

Let G be the real points of a semisimple algebraic Q-group, let H be an arithmetic subgroup of G and let T be the real points of an R-split torus in G. We prove that if there is a divergent T-orbit in G/H, and Q-rank(G) > 1, then the dimension of T is not larger than Q-rank(G). This provides a partial answer to a question of G.Tomanov and B.Weiss.

math.DG↗
arXiv1997

On non-Hamiltonian circulant digraphs of outdegree three

We construct infinitely many connected, circulant digraphs of outdegree three that have no hamiltonian circuit. All of our examples have an even number of vertices, and our examples are of two types: either every vertex in the digraph is adjacent to two diametrically opposite vertices, or every vertex is adjacent to the vertex diametrically opposite to itself.

math.CO↗