On a generalized crank for $k$-colored partitions

Abstract

A generalized crank ($k$-crank) for $k$-colored partitions is introduced. Following the work of Andrews-Lewis and Ji-Zhao, we derive two results for this newly defined $k$-crank. Namely, we first obtain some inequalities between the $k$-crank counts $M_{k}(r,m,n)$ for $m=2,3$ and $4$, then we prove the positivity of symmetrized even $k$-crank moments weighted by the parity for $k=2$ and $3$. We conclude with several remarks on furthering the study initiated here.