Block with cyclic defect group

A block has finite representation type exactly when its defect group is cyclic. In the forward implication, the block bimodule restricted to its defect group on both sides contains the regular defect-group bimodule as a summand; tensoring with arbitrary defect-group modules transfers finiteness to the defect group. Conversely, vertices are contained in the defect group and a cyclic $p$-group has only finitely many indecomposable modules, so there are only finitely many possible induced sources and their summands.

The basic algebra of a split block with cyclic defect is a Brauer tree algebra: its simple modules are indexed by the edges of a tree, with a distinguished vertex carrying the exceptional multiplicity. For a one-edge tree of multiplicity $m$, its basic algebra is $k[t]/(t^{m+1})$. Its ideals form the chain of powers of $t$, so its unique indecomposable projective is uniserial of length $m+1$.

Let $i$ be an edge at $v$. Kill the other radical branch of its indecomposable projective module. The resulting uniserial module has length $m_v\mathrm{val}(v)$ and its factors follow the cyclic edge order beginning at $i$. Quotienting its radical powers gives all shorter such modules. The edge succession uniquely fixes the path, and its nonzero arrow maps can be rescaled to one, giving uniqueness up to isomorphism. At an exceptional leaf this reduces to a nilpotent single Jordan chain; the other leaf loop, when present, is a socle path and vanishes in these shorter quotients.

Use a finite tree with cyclically ordered incident edges at each vertex, and multiplicities one except possibly at one vertex. Quiver vertices are tree edges; arrows follow each cyclic successor order, including loops at vertices of valency one. For an edge $i$ with endpoints $v,w$, write $C_{i,v}$ for the cycle around $v$. Impose $C_{i,v}^{m_v}=C_{i,w}^{m_w}$, $C_{i,v}^{m_v}{\alpha }_{i,v}=0$, and zero for any path that switches from one vertex-cycle to the other. The quotient of this path algebra is the basic Brauer tree algebra; redundant valency-one loops can be eliminated. Its indecomposable projective at $i$ has simple top and socle labelled by $i$, with two uniserial radical branches of lengths $m_v\mathrm{val}(v)$ and $m_w\mathrm{val}(w)$ meeting in that socle.

For a split block of a group algebra with cyclic defect group of a block of order $q=p^n$ and inertial index of a block $e$, its Brauer tree algebra has $e$ simple modules and exceptional multiplicity $(q-1)/e$. Its stable Auslander–Reiten quiver is $\mathbb{Z}{A}_{q-1}/⟨{\tau }^e⟩$, giving $e(q-1)$ nonprojective indecomposables. Adding the $e$ indecomposable projectives gives $eq$ indecomposables in total.