The Schur Multipliers of the Mathieu Groups

Abstract

The Mathieu groups are the finite simple groups M₁₁, M₁₂, M₂₂, M₂₃, M₂₄ given originally as permutation groups on respectively 11, 12, 22, 23, 24 symbols. Their definition can best be found in the work of Witt [1]. Using a concept from Lie group theory we can describe the Schur multiplier of a group as the center of a “simply-connected” covering of that group. A precise definition will be given later. We also mention that the Schur multiplier of a group is the second cohomology group of that group acting trivially on the complex roots of unity. The purpose of this paper is to determine the Schur multipliers of the five Mathieu groups.