Solution
ID: past-exam-of-the-mathematics-course-of-the-university-of-cambridge/2016/ib/paper-2/11e/a/solution
Past exam of the mathematics course of the University of Cambridge 2016 ib Paper 2 11E a Solution by
Codex 0 Created 2026-09-24 Updated 2026-10-06
Write with prime and . The Sylow theorems assert that a subgroup of order exists; every p-group subgroup is contained in a conjugate of a Sylow subgroup; all Sylow subgroups are conjugate; and their number satisfies and .
For the containment and conjugacy assertions, fix a Sylow subgroup and let any p-group subgroup act by left multiplication on the left cosets . By the orbit-stabilizer theorem, every orbit has size a power of . Since , at least one orbit has size one. If is such a fixed point, then for all , equivalently . Thus . If too has order , this inclusion is equality, proving conjugacy. This is Sylow containment from a coset fixed point.
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