Conditions for matchability in groups and field extensions

Abstract

The origins of the notion of matchings in groups spawn from a linear algebra problem proposed by E. K. Wakeford [24] which was tackled in 1996 [10]. In this paper, we first discuss unmatchable subsets in abelian groups. Then we formulate and prove linear analogues of results concerning matchings, along with a conjecture that, if true, would extend the primitive subspace theorem. We discuss the dimension $m$-intersection property for vector spaces and its connection to matching subspaces in a field extension, and we prove the linear version of an intersection property result of certain subsets of a given set.