arXiv subjects

Nicolas Monod

Publications and source records attributed to Nicolas Monod.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources

arXiv2014

Relative amenability

We introduce a relative fixed point property for subgroups of a locally compact group, which we call relative amenability. It is a priori weaker than amenability. We establish equivalent conditions, related among others to a problem studied by Reiter in 1968. We record a solution to Reiter's problem. We study the class X of groups in which relative amenability is equivalent to amenability for all closed subgroups; we prove that X contains all familiar groups. Actually, no group is known to lie outside X. Since relative amenability is closed under Chabauty limits, it follows that any Chabauty limit of amenable subgroups remains amenable if the ambient group belongs to the vast class X.

math.GR↗

arXiv2013

Non-supramenable groups acting on locally compact spaces

Supramenability of groups is characterised in terms of invariant measures on locally compact spaces. This opens the door to constructing interesting crossed product C*-algebras for non-supramenable groups. In particular, stable Kirchberg algebras in the UCT class are constructed using crossed products for both amenable and non-amenable groups.

math.OA↗

arXiv2013

Amenable hyperbolic groups

We give a complete characterization of the locally compact groups that are non-elementary Gromov-hyperbolic and amenable. They coincide with the class of mapping tori of discrete or continuous one-parameter groups of compacting automorphisms. We moreover give a description of all Gromov-hyperbolic locally compact groups with a cocompact amenable subgroup: modulo a compact normal subgroup, these turn out to be either rank one simple Lie groups, or automorphism groups of semi-regular trees acting doubly transitively on the set of ends. As an application, we show that the class of hyperbolic locally compact groups with a cusp-uniform non-uniform lattice, is very restricted.

math.GR↗

arXiv2013

Groups of piecewise projective homeomorphisms

The group of piecewise projective homeomorphisms of the line provides straightforward counter-examples to the so-called von Neumann conjecture. The examples are so simple that many additional properties can be established.

math.GR↗

arXiv2012

An obstruction to $\ell^p$-dimension

For any group $G$ containing an infinite elementary amenable subgroup, and any $2<p<\infty$, there exists closed invariant subspaces $E_i\nearrow \ell^pG$ and $F\neq 0$ such that $E_i\cap F = 0$ for all $i$. This is an obstacle to $\ell^p$-dimension and gives a negative answer to a question of Gaboriau.

math.GR↗

arXiv2012

Normal generation of locally compact groups

It is a well-known open problem since the 1970s whether a finitely generated perfect group can be normally generated by a single element or not. We prove that the topological version of this problem has an affirmative answer as long as we exclude infinite discrete quotients (which is probably a necessary restriction).

math.GR↗

arXiv2012

Cantor systems, piecewise translations and simple amenable groups

We provide the first examples of finitely generated simple groups that are amenable (and infinite). This follows from a general existence result on invariant states for piecewise-translations of the integers. The states are obtained by constructing a suitable family of densities on the classical Bernoulli space.

math.GR↗

arXiv2012

Fixed points and amenability in non-positive curvature

Consider a proper cocompact CAT(0) space X. We give a complete algebraic characterisation of amenable groups of isometries of X. For amenable discrete subgroups, an even narrower description is derived, implying Q-linearity in the torsion-free case. We establish Levi decompositions for stabilisers of points at infinity of X, generalising the case of linear algebraic groups to Is(X). A geometric counterpart of this sheds light on the refined bordification of X (à la Karpelevich) and leads to a converse to the Adams-Ballmann theorem. It is further deduced that unimodular cocompact groups cannot fix any point at infinity except in the Euclidean factor; this fact is needed for the study of CAT(0) lattices. Various fixed point results are derived as illustrations.

math.GR↗

arXiv2012

Is an irng singly generated as an ideal?

Recall that a rng is a ring which is possibly non-unital. In this note, we address the problem whether every finitely generated idempotent rng (abbreviated as irng) is singly generated as an ideal. It is well-known that it is the case for a commutative irng. We prove here it is also the case for a free rng on finitely many idempotents and for a finite irng. A relation to the Wiegold problem for perfect groups is discussed.

math.RA↗

arXiv2012

On the topological full group of a minimal Cantor Z^2-system

Grigorchuk and Medynets recently announced that the topological full group of a minimal Cantor Z-action is amenable. They asked whether the statement holds for all minimal Cantor actions of general amenable groups as well. We answer in the negative by producing a minimal Cantor Z^2-action for which the topological full group contains a non-abelian free group.

math.DS↗

arXiv2011

A fixed point theorem for L^1 spaces

We prove a fixed point theorem for a family of Banach spaces, notably L^1 and its non-commutative analogues. Several applications are given, e.g. the optimal solution to the "derivation problem" studied since the 1960s.

math.FA↗

arXiv2011

A lattice in more than two Kac--Moody groups is arithmetic

Let $Γ$ be an irreducible lattice in a product of n infinite irreducible complete Kac-Moody groups of simply laced type over finite fields. We show that if n is at least 3, then each Kac-Moody groups is in fact a simple algebraic group over a local field and $Γ$ is an arithmetic lattice. This relies on the following alternative which is satisfied by any irreducible lattice provided n is at least 2: either $Γ$ is an S-arithmetic (hence linear) group, or it is not residually finite. In that case, it is even virtually simple when the ground field is large enough. More general CAT(0) groups are also considered throughout.

math.GR↗

arXiv2010

The norm of the Euler class

We prove that the norm of the Euler class E for flat vector bundles is $2^{-n}$ (in even dimension $n$, since it vanishes in odd dimension). This shows that the Sullivan--Smillie bound considered by Gromov and Ivanov--Turaev is sharp. We construct a new cocycle representing E and taking only the two values $\pm 2^{-n}$; a null-set obstruction prevents any cocycle from existing on the projective space. We establish the uniqueness of an antisymmetric representative for E in bounded cohomology.

math.GT↗

arXiv2010

Decomposing locally compact groups into simple pieces

We present a contribution to the structure theory of locally compact groups. The emphasis is on compactly generated locally compact groups which admit no infinite discrete quotient. It is shown that such a group possesses a characteristic cocompact subgroup which is either connected or admits a non-compact non-discrete topologically simple quotient. We also provide a description of characteristically simple groups and of groups all of whose proper quotients are compact. We show that Noetherian locally compact groups without infinite discrete quotient admit a subnormal series with all subquotients compact, compactly generated Abelian, or compactly generated topologically simple. Two appendices introduce results and examples around the concept of quasi-product.

math.GR↗

arXiv2010

A note on topological amenability

We point out a simple characterisation of topological amenability in terms of bounded cohomology, following Johnson's reformulation of amenability.

math.GR↗

arXiv2009

The Dixmier problem, lamplighters and Burnside groups

J. Dixmier asked in 1950 whether every non-amenable group admits uniformly bounded representations that cannot be unitarised. We provide such representations upon passing to extensions by abelian groups. This gives a new characterisation of amenability. Furthermore, we deduce that certain Burnside groups are non-unitarisable, answering a question raised by G. Pisier.

math.GR↗

arXiv2008

Non-unitarisable representations and random forests

We establish a connection between Dixmier's unitarisability problem and the expected degree of random forests on a group. As a consequence, a residually finite group is non-unitarisable if its first L2-Betti number is non-zero or if it is finitely generated with non-trivial cost. Our criterion also applies to torsion groups constructed by D. Osin, thus providing the first examples of non-unitarisable groups not containing a non-Abelian free subgroup.

math.GR↗

arXiv2008

Product groups acting on manifolds

We analyse volume-preserving actions of product groups on Riemannian manifolds. To this end, we establish a new superrigidity theorem for ergodic cocycles of product groups ranging in linear groups. There are no a priori assumptions on the acting groups, except a spectral gap assumption on their action. Our main application to manifolds concerns irreducible actions of Kazhdan product groups. We prove the following dichotomy: Either the action is infinitesimally linear, which means that the derivative cocycle arises from unbounded linear representations of all factors. Otherwise, the action is measurably isometric, in which case there are at most two factors in the product group. As a first application, this provides lower bounds on the dimension of the manifold in terms of the number of factors in the acting group. Another application is a strong restriction for actions of non-linear groups.

math.GR↗