A local approach to a programme of Meierfrankenfeld: initial setting and the symmetric case

Abstract

A large $p$-subgroup of a group $G$ is a self-centralizing $p$-subgroup $Q \le G$ whose normalizer controls the normalizers of all the non-trivial, central subgroups of $Q$. In 2016 Meierfrankenfeld, Stellmacher and Stroth produced a result describing the $p$-local structure of a finite group having a large $p$-subgroup (the main examples arising from finite groups of Lie type in defining characteristic $p$). This result is a major success within the wider framework of studying groups of local characteristic $p$. We attempt to produce a result analogous to that of Meierfrankenfeld, Stellmacher and Stroth, but for fusion systems and localities. Previous work of Ellen Henke and the author shows that reasonable generalizations can be formulated and solved equivalently either within the realm of fusion systems or in the world of localities. In particular, in the present paper we set the stage for our analysis, showing how working within a locality grants a clear advantage: it allows to follow the same lines of reasoning as for a group. We therefore produce analogous reduction results and case subdivision as those in the 2016 result of Meierfrankenfeld et al. and, proceeding according to the analogy, we deal with occurrences of certain natural orthogonal modules and with the first of the cases that are to be studied, the so-called symmetric case. The remaining cases will appear in future publications.