Groups HT23, Lagrange’s theorem
Flashcards
@State Lagrange’s theorem.
Let $G$ be a finite group and $H$ a subgroup. Then $ \vert H \vert $ divides $ \vert G \vert $.
Lagrange’s theorem states that if $H$ is a subgroup of $G$ then $ \vert H \vert $ divides $ \vert G \vert $, i.e. $ \vert G \vert = m \vert H \vert $. The proof relies on showing that $G/H$ is a partition of $G$, and that each coset in $G/H$ has $ \vert H \vert $ elements. What does this imply that $m$ is?
The converse of Lagrange’s theorem, that a group must have subgroups with order the size of each of its prime factors, is not true in general. What special type of groups is it true for?
Cyclic groups.