Given a group action of 𝐺 on Ω,
there is a natural group action of 𝐺 on Ω×Ω.
The orbits of this induced action are called orbitals or 2-orbits, group
a generalization being [[n-orbit|𝑛-orbits]].
The number of orbitals is called the rank.
If Δ is an orbital, then so is its paired orbital
Δ∗={(𝛽,𝛼):(𝛼,𝛽)∈Δ}
and if Δ=Δ∗ we say Δ is self-paired.
An orbital Δ⊆Ω×Ω admits a natural interpretation as a digraph, known as the orbital digraph,
where by abuse of notation we write V(Δ)=Ω and A(Δ)=Δ.
Properties
Suppose Δ is an orbital, and identify it with the corresponding orbital digraph.