On groups with chordal power graph, including a classification in the case of finite simple groups

Abstract We prove various properties on the structure of groups whose power graph is chordal. Nilpotent groups with this property have been classified by (Electron J Combin 28(3):14, 2021). Here we classify the finite simple groups with chordal power graph, relative to typical number theoretic conditions. We do so by devising several sufficient conditions for the existence and non-existence of long cycles in power graphs of finite groups. We examine other natural group classes, including special linear, symmetric, generalized dihedral and quaternion groups, and we characterize direct products with chordal power graph. The classification problem is thereby reduced to directly indecomposable groups, and we further obtain a list of possible socles. Lastly, we give a general bound on the length of an induced path in chordal power graphs, providing another potential road to advance the classification beyond simple groups.