Automatic monoids versus monoids with finite convergent presentations
Friedrich Otto1
, Andrea Sattler-Klein2
and Klaus Madlener2 
| (1) |
Fachbereich Mathematik/Informatik, Universität Kassel, D-34109 Kassel |
| (2) |
Fachbereich Informatik, Universität Kaiserslautern, D-67653 Kaiserslautern |
Abstract
Due to their many nice properties groups with automatic structure (automatic groups) have received a lot of attention in the literature. The multiplication of an automatic group can be realized through finite
automata based on a regular set of (not necessarily unique) representatives for the group, and hence, each automatic group
has a tractable word problem and low derivational complexity. Consequently it has been asked whether corresponding results
also hold for monoids with automatic structure. Here we show that there exist finitely presented monoids with automatic structure that cannot be presented through finite
and convergent string-rewriting systems, thus answering a question in the negative that is still open for the class of automatic
groups. Secondly, we present an automatic monoid that has an exponential derivational complexity, which establishes another
difference to the class of automatic groups. In fact, both our example monoids are bi-automatic. In addition, it follows from
the first of our examples that a monoid which is given through a finite, noetherian, and weakly confluent string-rewriting
system need not have finite derivation type.
This work was supported by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (Projekte Ma 1208/5-1 und Ot 79/4-1).
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