[Math] Double coset representatives and structure of hecke algebras

hecke-algebrasrt.representation-theorysymmetric-groups

Let $GL_n(F_q)$ be the general linear group over finite field $F_q$ and $B_n$ be its borel subgroup consisting of all upper triangular matrices. Then the double cosets $B_n\backslash GL_n(F_q)/B_n$ are parametrised by the permutation group $S_n$, which can be viewed as permutation matrices. Further by the theory of representations of symmetric groups, it follows that the number of symmetric permutation matrices is equal to the number of irreducible representations(with multiplicities) of the Hecke algebra $C[B_n\backslash GL_n(F_q)/B_n]$.

My question is: how far is it true? In the sense that suppose I am given a general matrix group (with entries not necessarily from a field) $G$ with a subgroup $B$ such that double cosets $B\backslash G/B$ can be parametrised by symmetric matrices, then is it true that the Hecke algebra $C[B\backslash G/B]$ is commutative?

Best Answer

I'm not sure I understand the first paragraph, but regarding the second I think this goes by the name of "Gelfand's trick", used to prove eg commutativity of the spherical Hecke algebra attached to $G=GL_n(Q_p)$ and $B=GL_n(Z_p)$ --- namely we first discover that we can write down coset representatives that are invariant under transposition (in this case diagonal matrices with powers of $p$ on the diagonal). Then we recall that transposition is an anti-isomorphism of the group algebra with itself. Thus the Hecke algebra is a subalgebra on which an anti-isomorphism acts as the identity, hence it is in fact commutative. The same trick will work in your general situation.

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