On subpolygroup commutativity degree of finite polygroups

Abstract

Probabilistic group theory is concerned with the probability of group elements or group subgroups satisfying certain conditions. On the other hand, a polygroup is a generalization of a group and a special case of a hypergroup. This paper generalizes probabilistic group theory to probabilistic polygroup theory. In this regard, we extend the concept of the subgroup commutativity degree of a finite group to the subpolygroup commutativity degree of a finite polygroup $ P $. The latter measures the probability of two random subpolygroups $ H, K $ of $ P $ commuting (i.e., $ HK = KH $). First, using the subgroup commutativity table and the subpolygroup commutativity table, we present some results related to the new defined concept for groups and for polygroups. We then consider the special case of a polygroup associated to a group. We study the subpolygroup lattice and relate this to the subgroup lattice of the base group; this includes deriving an explicit formula for the subpolygroup commutativity degree in terms of the subgroup commutativity degree. Finally, we illustrate our results via non-trivial examples by applying the formulas that we prove to the associated polygroups of some well-known groups such as the dihedral group and the symmetric group.

Keywords

• polygroup
• subgroup commutativity degree
• subpolygroup lattice
• subpolygroup commutativity degree