Published online by Cambridge University Press: 09 April 2009
In a previous paper the authors described an algorithm to determine whether a group of matrices over a finite field, generated by a given set of matrices, contains one of the classical groups or the special linear group. The algorithm was designed to work for all sufficiently large field sizes and dimensions of the matrix group. However, it did not apply to certain small cases. Here we present an algorithm to handle the remaining cases. The theoretical background of the algorithm presented in this paper is a substantial extension of that needed for the original algorithm.