Characters of algebraic groups over number fields

Abstract

Let $k$ be a number field, $\mathbf{G}$ an algebraic group defined over $k$, and $\mathbf{G}(k)$ the group of $k$-rational points in $\mathbf{G}$. We determine the set of functions on $\mathbf{G}(k)$ which are of positive type and conjugation invariant, under the assumption that $\mathbf{G}(k)$ is generated by its unipotent elements. An essential step in the proof is the classification of the $\mathbf{G}(k)$-invariant ergodic probability measures on an adelic solenoid naturally associated to $\mathbf{G}(k)$. This last result is deduced from Ratner’s measure rigidity theorem for homogeneous spaces of $S$-adic Lie groups; this appears to be the first application of Ratner’s theorems in the context of operator algebras.