A pro-p group is the inverse limit of some system of finite p-groups, that is, of groups of prime-power order where the prime - conventionally denoted p - is fixed. Thus from one point of view, to study a pro-p group is the same as studying an infinite family of finite groups; but a pro-p group is also a compact topological group, and the compactness works its usual magic to bring 'infinite' problems down to manageable proportions. The p-adic integers appeared about a century ago, but the systematic study of pro-p groups in general is a fairly recent development. Although much has been dis covered, many avenues remain to be explored; the purpose of this book is to present a coherent account of the considerable achievements of the last several years, and to point the way forward. Thus our aim is both to stimulate research and to provide the comprehensive background on which that research must be based. The chapters cover a wide range. In order to ensure the most authoritative account, we have arranged for each chapter to be written by a leading contributor (or contributors) to the topic in question. Pro-p groups appear in several different, though sometimes overlapping, contexts.

A pro-p group is the inverse limit of some system of finite p-groups, that is, of groups of prime-power order where the prime - conventionally denoted p - is fixed. Thus from one point of view, to study a pro-p group is the same as studying an infinite family of finite groups; but a pro-p group is also a compact topological group, and the compactness works its usual magic to bring 'infinite' problems down to manageable proportions. The p-adic integers appeared about a century ago, but the systematic study of pro-p groups in general is a fairly recent development. Although much has been dis covered, many avenues remain to be explored; the purpose of this book is to present a coherent account of the considerable achievements of the last several years, and to point the way forward. Thus our aim is both to stimulate research and to provide the comprehensive background on which that research must be based. The chapters cover a wide range. In order to ensure the most authoritative account, we have arranged for each chapter to be written by a leading contributor (or contributors) to the topic in question. Pro-p groups appear in several different, though sometimes overlapping, contexts.

An up-to-date treatment of analytic pro-p groups for graduate students and researchers.

Award-winning monograph of the Ferran Sunyer i Balaguer Prize 2001. Subgroup growth studies the distribution of subgroups of finite index in a group as a function of the index. In the last two decades this topic has developed into one of the most active areas of research in infinite group theory; this book is a systematic and comprehensive account of the substantial theory which has emerged. As well as determining the range of possible 'growth types', for finitely generated groups in general and for groups in particular classes such as linear groups, a main focus of the book is on the tight connection between the subgroup growth of a group and its algebraic structure. A wide range of mathematical disciplines play a significant role in this work: as well as various aspects of infinite group theory, these include finite simple groups and permutation groups, profinite groups, arithmetic groups and Strong Approximation, algebraic and analytic number theory, probability, and p-adic model theory. Relevant aspects of such topics are explained in self-contained 'windows'.

In this book, Pierre de la Harpe provides a concise and engaging introduction to geometric group theory, a new method for studying infinite groups via their intrinsic geometry that has played a major role in mathematics over the past two decades. A recognized expert in the field, de la Harpe adopts a hands-on approach, illustrating key concepts with numerous concrete examples. The first five chapters present basic combinatorial and geometric group theory in a unique and refreshing way, with an emphasis on finitely generated versus finitely presented groups. In the final three chapters, de la Harpe discusses new material on the growth of groups, including a detailed treatment of the "Grigorchuk group." Most sections are followed by exercises and a list of problems and complements, enhancing the book's value for students; problems range from slightly more difficult exercises to open research problems in the field. An extensive list of references directs readers to more advanced results as well as connections with other fields.

Self-similar groups (groups generated by automata) initially appeared as examples of groups that are easy to define but have exotic properties like nontrivial torsion, intermediate growth, etc. This book studies the self-similarity phenomenon in group theory and shows its intimate relationship with dynamical systems and more classical self-similar structures, such as fractals, Julia sets, and self-affine tilings. This connection is established through the central topics of the book, which are the notions of the iterated monodromy group and limit space. A wide variety of examples and different applications of self-similar groups to dynamical systems and vice versa are discussed. In particular, it is shown that Julia sets can be reconstructed from the respective iterated monodromy groups and that groups with exotic properties can appear not just as isolated examples, but as naturally defined iterated monodromy groups of rational functions. The book offers important, new mathematics that will open new avenues of research in group theory and dynamical systems. It is intended to be accessible to a wide readership of professional mathematicians.

Survey and research articles from the Bielefeld conference on topological, combinatorial and arithmetic aspects of groups.

This self-contained book serves both as an introduction to profinite groups and as a reference for specialists in some areas of the theory. It contains complete and clear proofs for most results, many of which appear here in book form for the first time. Suitable as a basis for courses.

An important monograph summarizing the development of a classification system of finite p-groups.

This is a volume of research articles related to finite groups. Topics covered include the classification of finite simple groups, the theory of p-groups, cohomology of groups, representation theory and the theory of buildings and geometries. As well as more than twenty original papers on the latest developments, which will be of great interest to specialists, the volume contains several expository articles, from which students and non-experts can learn about the present state of knowledge and promising directions for further research. The Finite Groups 2003 conference was held in honor of John Thompson. The profound influence of his fundamental contributions is clearly visible in this collection of papers dedicated to him.