Canonical characters on quasi-symmetric functions and bivariate Catalan numbers

Every character on a graded connected Hopf algebra decomposes uniquely as a product of an even character and an odd character (Aguiar, Bergeron, and Sottile, math.CO/0310016). We obtain explicit formulas for the even and odd parts of the universal character on the Hopf algebra of quasi-symmetric functions. They can be described in terms of Legendre's beta function evaluated at half-integers, or in terms of bivariate Catalan numbers: $$C(m,n)=\frac{(2m)!(2n)!}{m!(m+n)!n!}.$$ Properties of characters and of quasi-symmetric functions are then used to derive several interesting identities among bivariate Catalan numbers and in particular among Catalan numbers and central binomial coefficients

A simple model of trees for unicellular maps

We consider unicellular maps, or polygon gluings, of fixed genus. A few years ago the first author gave a recursive bijection transforming unicellular maps into trees, explaining the presence of Catalan numbers in counting formulas for these objects. In this paper, we give another bijection that explicitly describes the "recursive part" of the first bijection. As a result we obtain a very simple description of unicellular maps as pairs made by a plane tree and a permutation-like structure. All the previously known formulas follow as an immediate corollary or easy exercise, thus giving a bijective proof for each of them, in a unified way. For some of these formulas, this is the first bijective proof, e.g. the Harer-Zagier recurrence formula, the Lehman-Walsh formula and the Goupil-Schaeffer formula. We also discuss several applications of our construction: we obtain a new proof of an identity related to covered maps due to Bernardi and the first author, and thanks to previous work of the second author, we give a new expression for Stanley character polynomials, which evaluate irreducible characters of the symmetric group. Finally, we show that our techniques apply partially to unicellular 3-constellations and to related objects that we call quasi-constellations.Comment: v5: minor revision after reviewers comments, 33 pages, added a refinement by degree of the Harer-Zagier formula and more details in some proof

Combinatorial methods of character enumeration for the unitriangular group

Let \UT_n(q) denote the group of unipotent $n\times n$ upper triangular matrices over a field with $q$ elements. The degrees of the complex irreducible characters of \UT_n(q) are precisely the integers $q^e$ with $0\leq e\leq \lfloor \frac{n}{2} \rfloor \lfloor \frac{n-1}{2} \rfloor$, and it has been conjectured that the number of irreducible characters of \UT_n(q) with degree $q^e$ is a polynomial in $q-1$ with nonnegative integer coefficients (depending on $n$ and $e$). We confirm this conjecture when $e\leq 8$ and $n$ is arbitrary by a computer calculation. In particular, we describe an algorithm which allows us to derive explicit bivariate polynomials in $n$ and $q$ giving the number of irreducible characters of \UT_n(q) with degree $q^e$ when $n>2e$ and $e\leq 8$. When divided by $q^{n-e-2}$ and written in terms of the variables $n-2e-1$ and $q-1$, these functions are actually bivariate polynomials with nonnegative integer coefficients, suggesting an even stronger conjecture concerning such character counts. As an application of these calculations, we are able to show that all irreducible characters of \UT_n(q) with degree $\leq q^8$ are Kirillov functions. We also discuss some related results concerning the problem of counting the irreducible constituents of individual supercharacters of \UT_n(q).Comment: 34 pages, 5 table

Multigraded combinatorial Hopf algebras and refinements of odd and even subalgebras

We develop a theory of multigraded (i.e., $N^l$-graded) combinatorial Hopf algebras modeled on the theory of graded combinatorial Hopf algebras developed by Aguiar, Bergeron, and Sottile [Compos. Math. 142 (2006), 1--30]. In particular we introduce the notion of canonical $k$-odd and $k$-even subalgebras associated with any multigraded combinatorial Hopf algebra, extending simultaneously the work of Aguiar et al. and Ehrenborg. Among our results are specific categorical results for higher level quasisymmetric functions, several basis change formulas, and a generalization of the descents-to-peaks map.Comment: 49 pages. To appear in the Journal of Algebraic Combinatoric

On free quasigroups and quasigroup representations

This work consists of three parts. The discussion begins with \emph{linear quasigroups}. For a unital ring $S$, an $S$-linear quasigroup is a unital $S$-module, with automorphisms $\rho$ and $\lambda$ giving a (nonassociative) multiplication $x\cdot y=x^\rho+y^\lambda$. If $S$ is the field of complex numbers, then ordinary characters provide a complete linear isomorphism invariant for finite-dimensional $S$-linear quasigroups. Over other rings, it is an open problem to determine tractably computable isomorphism invariants. The paper investigates this isomorphism problem for $\mathbb{Z}$-linear quasigroups. We consider the extent to which ordinary characters classify $\mathbb{Z}$-linear quasigroups and their representations of the free group on two generators. We exhibit non-isomorphic $\mathbb{Z}$-linear quasigroups with the same ordinary character. For a subclass of $\mathbb{Z}$-linear quasigroups, equivalences of the corresponding ordinary representations are realized by permutational intertwinings. This leads to a new equivalence relation on $\mathbb{Z}$-linear quasigroups, namely permutational similarity. Like the earlier concept of central isotopy, permutational similarity is intermediate between isomorphism and isotopy. The story progresses with a representation of the free quasigroup on a single generator. This provides the motivation behind the study of \emph{peri-Catalan numbers}. While Catalan numbers index the number of length $n$ magma words in a single generator, peri-Catalan numbers index the number of length $n$ reduced form quasigroup words in a single generator. We derive a recursive formula for the $n$-th peri-Catalan number. This is a new sequence in that it is not on the Online Encyclopedia of Integer Sequences

Renormalization: a quasi-shuffle approach

In recent years, the usual BPHZ algorithm for renormalization in perturbative quantum field theory has been interpreted, after dimensional regularization, as a Birkhoff decomposition of characters on the Hopf algebra of Feynman graphs, with values in a Rota-Baxter algebra of amplitudes. We associate in this paper to any such algebra a universal semi-group (different in nature from the Connes-Marcolli "cosmical Galois group"). Its action on the physical amplitudes associated to Feynman graphs produces the expected operations: Bogoliubov's preparation map, extraction of divergences, renormalization. In this process a key role is played by commutative and noncommutative quasi-shuffle bialgebras whose universal properties are instrumental in encoding the renormalization process

Chapitre 4 : inventaire du fonds Catalan-Jongmans

Il y a quelques années, à la demande de leur père, les enfants de François Jongmans – Claire & Denis – m’ont remis plusieurs cartons d’archives essentiellement centrées sur la figure de Catalan. Ce sont des notes patiemment recopiées ou photocopiées ici ou là dans divers services d’archives. Elles apportent un éclairage sur Catalan, sur tous les savants de son temps et également sur la circulation des mathématiques en Belgique. Elles montrent aussi le lent et patient travail de l’historien en..

The Tchebyshev transforms of the first and second kind

We give an in-depth study of the Tchebyshev transforms of the first and second kind of a poset, recently discovered by Hetyei. The Tchebyshev transform (of the first kind) preserves desirable combinatorial properties, including Eulerianess (due to Hetyei) and EL-shellability. It is also a linear transformation on flag vectors. When restricted to Eulerian posets, it corresponds to the Billera, Ehrenborg and Readdy omega map of oriented matroids. One consequence is that nonnegativity of the cd-index is maintained. The Tchebyshev transform of the second kind is a Hopf algebra endomorphism on the space of quasisymmetric functions QSym. It coincides with Stembridge's peak enumerator for Eulerian posets, but differs for general posets. The complete spectrum is determined, generalizing work of Billera, Hsiao and van Willigenburg. The type B quasisymmetric function of a poset is introduced. Like Ehrenborg's classical quasisymmetric function of a poset, this map is a comodule morphism with respect to the quasisymmetric functions QSym. Similarities among the omega map, Ehrenborg's r-signed Birkhoff transform, and the Tchebyshev transforms motivate a general study of chain maps. One such occurrence, the chain map of the second kind, is a Hopf algebra endomorphism on the quasisymmetric functions QSym and is an instance of Aguiar, Bergeron and Sottile's result on the terminal object in the category of combinatorial Hopf algebras. In contrast, the chain map of the first kind is both an algebra map and a comodule endomorphism on the type B quasisymmetric functions BQSym.Comment: 33 page