What Are the Elements of the Quotient Group D4/N?

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SUMMARY

The discussion centers on the quotient group D4/N, where D4 is defined as { (1)(2)(3)(4), (13)(24), (1234), (1432), (14)(23), (12)(34), (13), (24) } and N is the normal subgroup generated by (13)(24). Participants computed the left and right cosets to establish N's normality and identified that D4/N contains four elements: N, N(1432), N(12)(34), and either N(24) or N(13), as they represent the same coset. The correct notation for the elements of the quotient group is emphasized as using right cosets.

PREREQUISITES
  • Understanding of group theory concepts, specifically quotient groups
  • Familiarity with normal subgroups and cosets
  • Knowledge of the dihedral group D4 and its elements
  • Ability to compute left and right cosets
NEXT STEPS
  • Study the properties of normal subgroups in group theory
  • Learn about the structure and applications of dihedral groups
  • Explore the concept of coset representatives in quotient groups
  • Investigate the relationship between left and right cosets in non-abelian groups
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Students and educators in abstract algebra, particularly those focusing on group theory, as well as mathematicians interested in the properties of dihedral groups and quotient structures.

Felix542
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Homework Statement


Let D4 = { (1)(2)(3)(4) , (13)(24) , (1234) , (1432) , (14)(23) , (12)(34) , (13), (24) }
and N=<(13)(24)> which is a normal subgroup of d4 .

List the elements of d4/N .



Homework Equations





The Attempt at a Solution


I computed the left and right cosets to prove that N is a normal subgroup of D4 ( this was a previous part to the question )

The left cosets looked something like ;
N (1)(2)(3)(4) = {((1)(2)(3)(4) , (13)(24)}
N (1234) = {(1432),(1234)}
N (13)(24) = {((1)(2)(3)(4) , (13)(24)}
N (1432) = {(1432),(1234)}
N (14)(23) = {(14)(23) , (12)(34)}
N(12)(34) = {(14)(23) , (12)(34)}
N(13) = {(24,13)}
N(24 ) = {( (24),(13)}

And the right cosets were equal i.e N(1234)=(1234)N . To compute the quotient group d4/N , I know there will be four elements one will naturally be N , but the other three I'm not too sure about . From the above cosets I noticed that say N(14)(23) and N(12)(34) give the same set , but which would I choose to be in d4/N ? This problem is again for , N(24) and N(13) .

Hopefully this makes sense , thank you for any help :) .
 
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Felix542 said:

Homework Statement


Let D4 = { (1)(2)(3)(4) , (13)(24) , (1234) , (1432) , (14)(23) , (12)(34) , (13), (24) }
and N=<(13)(24)> which is a normal subgroup of d4 .

List the elements of d4/N .

Homework Equations


The Attempt at a Solution


I computed the left and right cosets to prove that N is a normal subgroup of D4 ( this was a previous part to the question )

The left cosets looked something like ;
N (1)(2)(3)(4) = {((1)(2)(3)(4) , (13)(24)}
N (1234) = {(1432),(1234)}
N (13)(24) = {((1)(2)(3)(4) , (13)(24)}
N (1432) = {(1432),(1234)}
N (14)(23) = {(14)(23) , (12)(34)}
N(12)(34) = {(14)(23) , (12)(34)}
N(13) = {(24,13)}
N(24 ) = {( (24),(13)}

And the right cosets were equal i.e N(1234)=(1234)N . To compute the quotient group d4/N , I know there will be four elements one will naturally be N , but the other three I'm not too sure about . From the above cosets I noticed that say N(14)(23) and N(12)(34) give the same set , but which would I choose to be in d4/N ? This problem is again for , N(24) and N(13) .

Hopefully this makes sense , thank you for any help :) .

Welcome to PF, Felix542! :smile:

N(24) and N(13) are the same coset (why?), so you can pick either.

Btw, these are "right" cosets and not "left" cosets, so you should write (24)N instead for an element of the quotient group D4/N.
 
I like Serena said:
Welcome to PF, Felix542! :smile:

N(24) and N(13) are the same coset (why?), so you can pick either.

Btw, these are "right" cosets and not "left" cosets, so you should write (24)N instead for an element of the quotient group D4/N.

Thanks for your reply ! Thanks for the welcome .
Oops yeah sorry meant right cosets sorry . Well I think they are the same because N(24 ) = {( (24),(13)}=N(13) ?

So would this be a suitable answer d4/N={N , N(1432) , N(12)(34) , 24(N)} ?
 
Felix542 said:
Thanks for your reply ! Thanks for the welcome .
Oops yeah sorry meant right cosets sorry . Well I think they are the same because N(24 ) = {( (24),(13)}=N(13) ?

So would this be a suitable answer d4/N={N , N(1432) , N(12)(34) , 24(N)} ?

Yep!
 
Okay thank you :) . Sorry , just one more quick question ! Would there be other valid answers ? I'm not sure if this is correct but since say we have shown N(24 )= N(13) , we could equally have an equivalent answer for D4/N ?
 
Each element in D4/N is unique.
It's just that there is more than one way to write each element down.

You could for instance also have written {(24),(13)} to represent the element (13)N.
 
So for future reference I'm looking each time for a coset representative to form the quotient group - I hope this is the right term to use here ?
 
Hmm, coset representative sounds as if you're talking about one element from the coset, like (13).
I guess you could use that to represent the coset, but I would tend to stick to (13)N or {(24),(13)}.


From wikipedia:
"Let N be a normal subgroup of a group G. We define the set G/N to be the set of all left cosets of N in G, i.e., G/N = { aN : a in G }."

and:
"gH = {gh : h an element of H } is a left coset of H in G"


I prefer to use either the notation aN, or to write out the set itself.
 

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