Stanley's coloured factorization conjecture for symmetric groups

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Let [m]={1,2,…,m}[m]=\{1,2,\dots,m\}, let μ⊢k\mu\vdash k, and let ωμ\omega_\mu be a fixed element of the conjugacy class CμC_\mu in Sk\mathfrak{S}_k. Let Sk(m)\mathfrak{S}^{(m)}_k be the set of permutations of [k][k] whose cycles are coloured by [m][m]. For (α,ψ)∈Sk(m)(\alpha,\psi)\in\mathfrak{S}^{(m)}_k, write κi(m)(α,ψ)\kappa^{(m)}_i(\alpha,\psi) for the number of cycles of α\alpha coloured ii, and set κ(m)(α,ψ)=(κ1(m)(α,ψ),κ2(m)(α,ψ),…)\kappa^{(m)}(\alpha,\psi)=(\kappa^{(m)}_1(\alpha,\psi),\kappa^{(m)}_2(\alpha,\psi),\ldots), pκ(m)(α,ψ)=∏ipiκi(m)(α,ψ)\mathbf{p}^{\kappa^{(m)}(\alpha,\psi)}=\prod_i p_i^{\kappa^{(m)}_i(\alpha,\psi)}. Define (α,ψ)∘ωμ=(γ,ν)(\alpha,\psi)\circ\omega_\mu=(\gamma,\nu) by γ=αωμ\gamma=\alpha\omega_\mu and, for every cycle u=(u1  u2  ⋯  ut)u=(u_1\;u_2\;\cdots\;u_t) of γ\gamma, ν(u)=max⁡1≤i≤t{ψ(Cα(ui))}\nu(u)=\max_{1\leq i\leq t}\{\psi(C^\alpha(u_i))\}, where Cα(ui)C^\alpha(u_i) is the cycle of α\alpha containing uiu_i. Stanley's coloured factorization conjecture. One has

(−1)kFμ(p;−q)=∑(α,ψ)∈Sk(m)pκ(m)(α,ψ)qκ(m)((α,ψ)∘ωμ).(-1)^k F_\mu(\mathbf{p};\mathbf{-q})=\sum_{(\alpha,\psi)\in\mathfrak{S}^{(m)}_k}\mathbf{p}^{\kappa^{(m)}(\alpha,\psi)}\mathbf{q}^{\kappa^{(m)}((\alpha,\psi)\circ\omega_\mu)}.

This gives a conjectured combinatorial interpretation of the multivariate character polynomials FμF_\mu. The assertion is known when m=1m=1, corresponding to factorizations without colours, but remains open for m>1m>1, even when μ\mu has one part.

References

Primary source

Amarpreet Rattan, “Stanley's character polynomials and coloured factorizations in the symmetric group”, arXiv:math/0610557 (2007).

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