On the right and left 4-Engel elements

Abstract

In this paper we study left and right 4-Engel elements of a group. In particular, we prove that $<a,a^b>$ is nilpotent of class at most 4, whenever $a$ is any element and $b^{\pm 1}$ are right 4-Engel elements or $a^{\pm 1}$ are left 4-Engel elements and $b$ is an arbitrary element of $G$. Furthermore we prove that for any prime $p$ and any element $a$ of finite $p$-power order in a group $G$ such that $a^{\pm 1}\in L_4(G)$, $a^4$, if $p=2$, and $a^p$, if $p$ is an odd prime number, is in the Baer radical of $G$.

Theorem 1.4 improved; Lemma 2.7 removed; to appear in Communications in Algebra