Counting multiplicative groups with prescribed subgroups

Abstract

We examine two counting problems that seem very group-theoretic on the surface but, on closer examination, turn out to concern integers with restrictions on their prime factors. First, given an odd prime $q$ and a finite abelian $q$-group $H$, we consider the set of integers $n\le x$ such that the Sylow $q$-subgroup of the multiplicative group $(\mathbb Z/n\mathbb Z)^\times$ is isomorphic to $H$. We show that the counting function of this set of integers is asymptotic to $K x(\log\log x)^\ell/(\log x)^{1/(q-1)}$ for explicit constants $K$ and $\ell$ depending on $q$ and $H$. Second, we consider the set of integers $n\le x$ such that the multiplicative group $(\mathbb Z/n\mathbb Z)^\times$ is "maximally non-cyclic", that is, such that all of its prime-power subgroups are elementary groups. We show that the counting function of this set of integers is asymptotic to $A x/(\log x)^{1-\xi}$ for an explicit constant $A$, where $\xi$ is Artin's constant. As it turns out, both of these group-theoretic problems can be reduced to problems of counting integers with restrictions on their prime factors, allowing them to be addressed by classical techniques of analytic number theory.