To any free group automorphism, we associate a universal (cone of) limit tree(s) with three defining properties: first, the tree has a minimal isometric action of the free group with trivial arc stabilizers; second, there is a unique expanding dilation of the tree that represents the free group automorphism; and finally, the loxodromic elements are exactly the elements that weakly limit to dominating attracting laminations under forward iteration by the automorphism. So the action on the tree detects the automorphism’s dominating exponential dynamics.

As a corollary, our previously constructed limit pretree that detects the exponential dynamics is canonical. We also characterize all very small trees that admit an expanding homothety representing a given automorphism. In the appendix, we prove a variation of Feighn–Handel’s recognition theorem for atoroidal outer automorphisms.

In this note we investigate the centraliser of a linearly growing element of $\mathrm{Out}(F_n)$ (that is, a root of a Dehn twist automorphism), and show that it has a finite index subgroup mapping onto a direct product of certain “equivariant McCool groups” with kernel a finitely generated free abelian group. In particular, this allows us to show it is VF and hence finitely presented.

To any free group automorphism, we associate a real pretree with several nice properties. First, it has a rigid/non-nesting action of the free group with trivial arc stabilizers. Secondly, there is an expanding pretree-automorphism of the real pretree that represents the free group automorphism. Finally and crucially, the loxodromic elements are exactly those whose (conjugacy class) length grows exponentially under iteration of the automorphism; thus, the action on the real pretree is able to detect the growth type of an element.

This construction extends the theory of metric trees that has been used to study free group automorphisms. The new idea is that one can equivariantly blow up an isometric action on a real tree with respect to other real trees and get a rigid action on a treelike structure known as a real pretree. Topology plays no role in this construction as all the work is done in the language of pretrees (intervals).

We construct an unfolding path in Outer space which does not converge in the boundary, and instead it accumulates on the entire 1-simplex of projectivized length measures on a nongeometric arational ${\mathbb R}$-tree T. We also show that T admits exactly two dual ergodic projective currents. This is the first nongeometric example of an arational tree that is neither uniquely ergodic nor uniquely ergometric.

A theorem of Brady and Meier states that a right-angled Artin group is a duality group if and only if the flag complex of the defining graph is Cohen–Macaulay. We use this to give an example of a RAAG with the property that its outer automorphism group is not a virtual duality group. This gives a partial answer to a question of Vogtmann. In an appendix, Brück describes how he used a computer-assisted search to find further examples.

The central kernel $K(G)$ of a group G is the (characteristic) subgroup consisting of all elements $x\in G$ such that $x^{\gamma }=x$ for every central automorphism $\gamma $ of G. We prove that if G is a finite-by-nilpotent group whose central kernel has finite index, then the full automorphism group $Aut(G)$ of G is finite. Some applications of this result are given.

We obtain conditions of uniform continuity for endomorphisms of free-abelian times free groups for the product metric defined by taking the prefix metric in each component and establish an equivalence between uniform continuity for this metric and the preservation of a coarse-median, a concept recently introduced by Fioravanti. Considering the extension of an endomorphism to the completion, we count the number of orbits for the action of the subgroup of fixed points (respectively periodic) points on the set of infinite fixed (respectively periodic) points. Finally, we study the dynamics of infinite points: for automorphisms and some endomorphisms, defined in a precise way, fitting a classification given by Delgado and Ventura, we prove that every infinite point is either periodic or wandering, which implies that the dynamics is asymptotically periodic.

On établit une décomposition de l’homologie stable des groupes d’automorphismes des groupes libres à coefficients polynomiaux contravariants en termes d’homologie des foncteurs. Elle permet plusieurs calculs explicites, qui recoupent des résultats établis de manière indépendante par O. Randal-Williams et généralisent certains d’entre eux. Nos méthodes reposent sur l’examen d’extensions de Kan dérivées associées à plusieurs catégories de groupes libres, la généralisation d’un critère d’annulation homologique à coefficients polynomiaux dû à Scorichenko, le théorème de Galatius identifiant l’homologie stable des groupes d’automorphismes des groupes libres à celle des groupes symétriques, la machinerie des $\unicode[STIX]{x1D6E4}$-espaces et le scindement de Snaith.

In Ersoy et al. [J. Algebra481 (2017), 1–11], we have proved that if G is a locally finite group with an elementary abelian p-subgroup A of order strictly greater than p2 such that CG(A) is Chernikov and for every non-identity α ∈ A the centralizer CG(α) does not involve an infinite simple group, then G is almost locally soluble. This result is a consequence of another result proved in Ersoy et al. [J. Algebra481 (2017), 1–11], namely: if G is a simple locally finite group with an elementary abelian group A of automorphisms acting on it such that the order of A is greater than p2, the centralizer CG(A) is Chernikov and for every non-identity α ∈ A the set of fixed points CG(α) does not involve an infinite simple groups then G is finite. In this paper, we improve this result about simple locally finite groups: Indeed, suppose that G is a simple locally finite group, consider a finite non-abelian subgroup P of automorphisms of exponent p such that the centralizer CG(P) is Chernikov and for every non-identity α ∈ P the set of fixed points CG(α) does not involve an infinite simple group. We prove that if Aut(G) has such a subgroup, then G ≅PSLp(k) where char k ≠ p and P has a subgroup Q of order p2 such that CG(P) = Q.

If G is a semisimple Lie group of real rank at least two and Γ is an irreducible lattice in G, then every homomorphism from Γ to the outer automorphism group of a finitely generated free group has finite image.

An automorphism φ of a group G is said to be normal if φ(H) = H for each normal subgroup H of G. These automorphisms form a group containing the group of inner automorphisms. When G is a non-abelian free (or free soluble) group, it is known that these groups of automorphisms coincide, but this is not always true when G is a free metabelian nilpotent group. The aim of this paper is to determine the group of normal automorphisms in this last case.

We describe the group of all reflection-preserving automorphisms of an imprimitive complex reflection group. We also study some properties of this automorphism group.

Let (M, G) be a pair of groups, in which M is a normal subgroup of G such that G/M and M/Z(M, G) are of orders pm and pn. respectively. In 1998, Ellis proved that the commutator subgroup [M, G] has order at most pn(n + 2 m−1)/2.

In the present paper by assuming /[M, G] = pn(n+2m−1)/2, we determine the pair (M, G). An upper bound is obtained for the Schur multiplier of the pair (M, G), which generalizes the work of Green (1956).

In this paper a necessary and sufficient condition will be given for groups to be ν-isologic, with respect to a given variety of groups ν. Its is also shown that every ν-isologism family of a group contains a ν-Hopfian group. Finally we show that if G is in the variety ν, then every ν-covering group of G is a Hopfian group.

Let p be a prime number, and let F be a free pro-p group of rank two. Consider an automorphism α of F of finite order m, and let FixF(α) = {x ∈ F | α(x) = x} be the subgroup of F consisting of the elements fixed by α. It is known that if m is prime to p and α = idF, then the rank of FixF(α) is infinite. In this paper we show that if m is a finite power pr of p, the rank of FixF(α) is at most 2. We conjecture that if the rank of F is n and the order of a is a power of α, then rank (FixF(α)) ≤ n.

The object of this paper is to exhibit an infinite set of finite semisimple groups H, each of which is the automorphism group of some infinite group, but of no finite group. We begin the construction by choosing a finite simple group S whose outer automorphism group and Schur multiplier possess certain specified properties. The group H is a certain subgroup of Aut S which contains S. For example, most of the PSL's over a non-prime finite field are candidates for S, and in this case, H is generated by all of the inner, diagonal and graph automorphisms of S.