In a recent preprint, Haonan Zhang shows that if \nu\in M_p(Y_n) (where Y_n is a Sekine Finite Quantum Group), then the convolution powers, \nu^{\star k}, converges if

\nu(e_{(0,0)})>0.

The algebra of functions F(Y_n) is a multimatrix algebra:

F(Y_n)=\left(\bigoplus_{i,j\in\mathbb{Z}_n}\mathbb{C}e_{(i,j)}\right)\oplus M_n(\mathbb{C}).

As it happens, where a=\sum_{i,j\in\mathbb{Z}_n}x_{(i,j)}e_{(i,j)}\oplus A, the counit on F(Y_n) is given by \varepsilon(a)=x_{(0,0)}, that is \varepsilon=e^{(0,0)}, dual to e_{(0,0)}.

To help with intuition, making the incorrect assumption that Y_n is a classical group (so that F(Y_n) is commutative — it’s not), because \varepsilon=e^{(0,0)}, the statement \nu(e_{(0,0)})>0, implies that for a real coefficient x^{(0,0)}>0,

\nu=x^{(0,0)}\varepsilon+\cdots= x^{(0,0)}\delta^e+\cdots,

as for classical groups \varepsilon=\delta^e.

That is the condition \nu(e_{(0,0)})>0 is a quantum analogue of e\in\text{supp}(\nu).

Consider a random walk on a classical (the algebra of functions on G is commutative) finite group G driven by a \nu\in M_p(G).

The following is a very non-algebra-of-functions-y proof that e\in \text{supp}(\nu) implies that the convolution powers of \nu converge.

Proof: Let H be the smallest subgroup of G on which \nu is supported:

\displaystyle H=\bigcap_{\underset{\nu(S_i)=1}{S_i\subset G}}S_i.

We claim that the random walk on H driven by \nu is ergordic (see Theorem 1.3.2).

The driving probability \nu\in M_p(G) is not supported on any proper subgroup of H, by the definition of H.

If \nu is supported on a coset of proper normal subgroup N, say Nx, then because e\in \text{supp}(\nu), this coset must be Ne\cong N, but this also contradicts the definition of H.

Therefore, \nu^{\star k} converges to the uniform distribution on H \bullet

Apart from the big reason — that this proof talks about points galore — this kind of proof is not available in the quantum case because there exist \nu\in M_p(G) that converge, but not to the Haar state on any quantum subgroup. A quick look at the paper of Zhang shows that some such states have the quantum analogue of e\in\text{supp}(\nu).

So we have some questions:

  • Is there a proof of the classical result (above) in the language of the algebra of functions on G, that necessarily bypasses talk of points and of subgroups?
  • And can this proof be adapted to the quantum case?
  • Is the claim perhaps true for all finite quantum groups but not all compact quantum groups?
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