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Moufang loop - Wikipedia

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In mathematics, a Moufang loop is a special kind of algebraic structure. It is similar to

group in many ways but need not be associative. Moufang loops were introduced by Ru
Moufang (1935). Smooth Moufang loops have an associated algebra, the Malcev algeb
similar in some ways to how a Lie group has an associated Lie algebra.

Definition[edit]
A Moufang loop is a loop Q that satisfies the four following identities for all x, y, z in Q (t
binary operation in Q is denoted by juxtaposition):

1. z(x(zy)) = ((zx)z)y;
2. x(z(yz)) = ((xz)y)z
3. (zx)(yz) = (z(xy))z
4. (zx)(yz) = z((xy)z).

These identities are known as Moufang identities.

Examples[edit]
It follows that and . With the above product M(G,2) is a Moufang loop. It is
associative if and only if G is abelian.

The smallest nonassociative Moufang loop is M(S3, 2) which has order 12.
Richard A. Parker constructed a Moufang loop of order 213, which was used by Conway i
his construction of the monster group. Parker's loop has a center of order 2 with element
denoted by 1, −1, and the quotient by the center is an elementary abelian group of order
212, identified with the binary Golay code. The loop is then defined up to isomorphism b
the equations

A2 = (−1)|A|/4
BA = (−1)|A∩B|/2AB
A(BC)= (−1)|A∩B∩C|(AB)C

where |A| is the number of elements of the code word A, and so on. For more details see
Conway, J. H.; Curtis, R. T.; Norton, S. P.; Parker, R. A.; and Wilson, R. A.: Atlas of Finit
Groups: Maximal Subgroups and Ordinary Characters for Simple Groups. Oxford,
England.

Properties[edit]
Associativity[edit]
Moufang loops differ from groups in that they need not be associative. A Moufang loop that
associative is a group. The Moufang identities may be viewed as weaker forms of associativit

By setting various elements to the identity, the Moufang identities imply

x(xy) = (xx)y left alternative identity

(xy)y = x(yy) right alternative identity
x(yx) = (xy)x flexible identity (see flexible algebra).

Moufang's theorem states that when three elements x, y, and z in a Moufang loop obey t
associative law: (xy)z = x(yz) then they generate an associative subloop; that is, a group
corollary of this is that all Moufang loops are di-associative (i.e. the subloop generated by a
two elements of a Moufang loop is associative and therefore a group). In particular, Moufa
loops are power associative, so that exponents xn are well-defined. When working w
Moufang loops, it is common to drop the parenthesis in expressions with only two distin
elements. For example, the Moufang identities may be written unambiguously as

1. z(x(zy)) = (zxz)y
2. ((xz)y)z = x(zyz)
3. (zx)(yz) = z(xy)z.

Left and right multiplication[edit]

The Moufang identities can be written in terms of the left and right multiplication operato
on Q. The first two identities state that

while the third identity says

for all in . Here is bimultiplication by . The third Moufang identity

therefore equivalent to the statement that the triple is an autotopy of for all in

Inverse properties[edit]
All Moufang loops have the inverse property, which means that each element x has a tw
sided inverse x−1 which satisfies the identities:

for all x and y. It follows that and if and only if .

Moufang loops are universal among inverse property loops; that is, a loop Q is a Moufang lo
if and only if every loop isotope of Q has the inverse property. If follows that every loop isoto
of a Moufang loop is a Moufang loop.

One can use inverses to rewrite the left and right Moufang identities in a more useful form:

Lagrange property[edit]
A finite loop Q is said to have the Lagrange property if the order of every subloop of Q divid
the order of Q. Lagrange's theorem in group theory states that every finite group has t
Lagrange property. It was an open question for many years whether or not finite Moufa
loops had Lagrange property. The question was finally resolved by Alexander Grishkov a
Andrei Zavarnitsine, and independently by Stephen Gagola III and Jonathan Hall, in 200
Every finite Moufang loop does have the Lagrange property. More results for the theory
finite groups have been generalized to Moufang loops by Stephen Gagola III in recent years.

Moufang quasigroups[edit]
Any quasigroup satisfying one of the Moufang identities must, in fact, have an ident
element and therefore be a Moufang loop. We give a proof here for the third identity:

Let a be any element of Q, and let e be the unique element such that ae = a.
Then for any x in Q, (xa)x = (x(ae))x = (xa)(ex).
Cancelling gives x = ex so that e is a left identity element.
Now for any y in Q, ye = (ey)(ee) =(e(ye))e = (ye)e.
Cancelling gives y = ye, so e is also a right identity element.
Therefore, e is a two-sided identity element.

The proofs for the first two identities are somewhat more difficult (Kunen 1996).

Open problems[edit]
Phillips' problem is an open problem in the theory presented by J. D. Phillips at Loops '
in Prague. It asks whether there exists a finite Moufang loop of odd order with a triv
nucleus.

Recall that the nucleus of a loop (or more generally a quasigroup) is the set of such th
, and hold for all in the loop.

See also: Problems in loop theory and quasigroup theory

See also[edit]
Malcev algebra
Bol loop
Gyrogroup

References[edit]
V. D. Belousov (2001) [1994], "Moufang loops", Encyclopedia of Mathematics, EMS Pre
Goodaire, Edgar G.; May, Sean; Raman, Maitreyi (1999). The Moufang loops of order
less than 64. Nova Science Publishers. ISBN 0-444-82438-3.
Gagola III, Stephen (2011). "How and why Moufang loops behave like groups".
Quasigroups And Related Systems. 19: 1–22.
Grishkov, Alexander; Zavarnitsine, Andrei (2005). "Lagrange's theorem for Moufang
loops". Mathematical Proceedings of the Cambridge Philosophical Society. 139: 41–57.
doi:10.1017/S0305004105008388.
Kunen, K. (1996). "Moufang quasigroups". Journal of Algebra. 183 (1): 231–4.
CiteSeerX 10.1.1.52.5356. doi:10.1006/jabr.1996.0216.
Moufang, R. (1935), "Zur Struktur von Alternativkörpern", Math. Ann., 110: 416–430,
doi:10.1007/bf01448037, hdl:10338.dmlcz/119719
Smith, Jonathan D. H.; Romanowska, Anna B. (1999). Post-Modern Algebra. Wiley-
Interscience. ISBN 0-471-12738-8.
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External links[edit]
LOOPS package for GAP This package has a library containing all nonassociative Moufan
loops of orders up to and including 81.
"Moufang loop". PlanetMath.