The theory of simple algebraic groups is important in many areas of mathematics. The authors of this book investigate the subgroups of certain types of simple algebraic groups and obtain a complete description of all those subgroups which are themselves simple. This description is particularly useful in understanding centralizers of subgroups and restrictions of representations.

This paper is a contribution to the study of the subgroup structure of excep-tional algebraic groups over algebraically closed fields of arbitrary characteristic. Following Serre, a closed subgroup of a semisimple algebraic group G is called irreducible if it lies in no proper parabolic subgroup of G. In this paper we com-plete the classification of irreducible connected subgroups of exceptional algebraic groups, providing an explicit set of representatives for the conjugacy classes of such subgroups. Many consequences of this classification are also given. These include results concerning the representations of such subgroups on various G-modules: for example, the conjugacy classes of irreducible connected subgroups are determined by their composition factors on the adjoint module of G, with one exception. A result of Liebeck and Testerman shows that each irreducible connected sub-group X of G has only finitely many overgroups and hence the overgroups of X form a lattice. We provide tables that give representatives of each conjugacy class of connected overgroups within this lattice structure. We use this to prove results concerning the subgroup structure of G: for example, when the characteristic is 2, there exists a maximal connected subgroup of G containing a conjugate of every irreducible subgroup A1 of G.

This book concerns the theory of unipotent elements in simple algebraic groups over algebraically closed or finite fields, and nilpotent elements in the corresponding simple Lie algebras. These topics have been an important area of study for decades, with applications to representation theory, character theory, the subgroup structure of algebraic groups and finite groups, and the classification of the finite simple groups. The main focus is on obtaining full information on class representatives and centralizers of unipotent and nilpotent elements. Although there is a substantial literature on this topic, this book is the first single source where such information is presented completely in all characteristics. In addition, many of the results are new--for example, those concerning centralizers of nilpotent elements in small characteristics. Indeed, the whole approach, while using some ideas from the literature, is novel, and yields many new general and specific facts concerning the structure and embeddings of centralizers.

Originating from a summer school taught by the authors, this concise treatment includes many of the main results in the area. An introductory chapter describes the fundamental results on linear algebraic groups, culminating in the classification of semisimple groups. The second chapter introduces more specialized topics in the subgroup structure of semisimple groups and describes the classification of the maximal subgroups of the simple algebraic groups. The authors then systematically develop the subgroup structure of finite groups of Lie type as a consequence of the structural results on algebraic groups. This approach will help students to understand the relationship between these two classes of groups. The book covers many topics that are central to the subject, but missing from existing textbooks. The authors provide numerous instructive exercises and examples for those who are learning the subject as well as more advanced topics for research students working in related areas.

This book is intended for graduate students and research mathematicians interested in group theory and genralizations

The study of finite subgroups of a simple algebraic group $G$ reduces in a sense to those which are almost simple. If an almost simple subgroup of $G$ has a socle which is not isomorphic to a group of Lie type in the underlying characteristic of $G$, then the subgroup is called non-generic. This paper considers non-generic subgroups of simple algebraic groups of exceptional type in arbitrary characteristic.

The first edition of this book presented the theory of linear algebraic groups over an algebraically closed field. The second edition, thoroughly revised and expanded, extends the theory over arbitrary fields, which are not necessarily algebraically closed. It thus represents a higher aim. As in the first edition, the book includes a self-contained treatment of the prerequisites from algebraic geometry and commutative algebra, as well as basic results on reductive groups. As a result, the first part of the book can well serve as a text for an introductory graduate course on linear algebraic groups.

Let [italic]G be a simple algebraic group of exceptional type over an algebraically closed field of characteristic [italic]p. The subgroups of [italic]G maximal with respect to being closed and connected are determined, although mild restrictions on [italic]p are required in dealing with certain simple subgroups of low rank. For [italic]p = 0 we recover the results of Dynkin.

This volume contains 19 articles written by speakers at the Advanced Study Institute on 'Modular representations and subgroup structure of al gebraic groups and related finite groups' held at the Isaac Newton Institute, Cambridge from 23rd June to 4th July 1997. We acknowledge with gratitude the financial support given by the NATO Science Committee to enable this ASI to take place. Generous financial support was also provided by the European Union. We are also pleased to acknowledge funds given by EPSRC to the Newton Institute which were used to support the meeting. It is a pleasure to thank the Director of the Isaac Newton Institute, Professor Keith Moffatt, and the staff of the Institute for their dedicated work which did so much to further the success of the meeting. The editors wish to thank Dr. Ross Lawther and Dr. Nick Inglis most warmly for their help in the production of this volume. Dr. Lawther in particular made an invaluable contribution in preparing the volume for submission to the publishers. Finally we wish to thank the distinguished speakers at the ASI who agreed to write articles for this volume based on their lectures at the meet ing. We hope that the volume will stimulate further significant advances in the theory of algebraic groups.

Let $G=G(K)$ be a simple algebraic group defined over an algebraically closed field $K$ of characteristic $p\geq 0$. A subgroup $X$ of $G$ is said to be $G$-completely reducible if, whenever it is contained in a parabolic subgroup of $G$, it is contained in a Levi subgroup of that parabolic. A subgroup $X$ of $G$ is said to be $G$-irreducible if $X$ is in no proper parabolic subgroup of $G$; and $G$-reducible if it is in some proper parabolic of $G$. In this paper, the author considers the case that $G=F_4(K)$. The author finds all conjugacy classes of closed, connected, semisimple $G$-reducible subgroups $X$ of $G$. Thus he also finds all non-$G$-completely reducible closed, connected, semisimple subgroups of $G$. When $X$ is closed, connected and simple of rank at least two, he finds all conjugacy classes of $G$-irreducible subgroups $X$ of $G$. Together with the work of Amende classifying irreducible subgroups of type $A_1$ this gives a complete classification of the simple subgroups of $G$. The author also uses this classification to find all subgroups of $G=F_4$ which are generated by short root elements of $G$, by utilising and extending the results of Liebeck and Seitz.