Linear sets in the projective line over the endomorphism ring of a finite field

TL;DR

This paper explores the properties and classifications of linear sets in the projective line over a ring related to finite fields, establishing conditions for pseudoregulus type linear sets and their geometric characterizations.

Contribution

It introduces a new perspective on linear sets over the endomorphism ring, linking them to Grassmannians and characterizing pseudoregulus type sets through projectivities.

Findings

Characterization of linear sets of pseudoregulus type.

Relationship between linear sets and Grassmannian subspaces.

Conditions for scattered linear sets to be of pseudoregulus type.

Abstract

Let $\mathrm{PG}(1,E)$ be the projective line over the endomorphism ring $E=End_q({\mathbb F}_{q^t})$ of the $\mathbb F_q$-vector space ${\mathbb F}_{q^t}$. As is well known there is a bijection $\Psi:\mathrm{PG}(1,E)\rightarrow{\cal G}_{2t,t,q}$ with the Grassmannian of the $(t-1)$-subspaces in $\mathrm{PG}(2t-1,q)$. In this paper along with any $\mathbb F_q$-linear set $L$ of rank $t$ in $\mathrm{PG}(1,q^t)$, determined by a $(t-1)$-dimensional subspace $T^\Psi$ of $\mathrm{PG}(2t-1,q)$, a subset $L_T$ of $\mathrm{PG}(1,E)$ is investigated. Some properties of linear sets are expressed in terms of the projective line over the ring $E$. In particular the attention is focused on the relationship between $L_T$ and the set $L'_T$, corresponding via $\Psi$ to a collection of pairwise skew $(t-1)$-dimensional subspaces, with $T\in L'_T$, each of which determine $L$. This leads among other things to a characterization of the linear sets of pseudoregulus type. It is proved that a scattered linear set $L$ related to $T\in\mathrm{PG}(1,E)$ is of pseudoregulus type if and only if there exists a projectivity $\varphi$ of $\mathrm{PG}(1,E)$ such that $L_T^\varphi=L'_T$.