Hulls of Free Linear Codes over a Non-Unital Ring

Abstract: This paper investigates the hull codes of free linear codes over a non-unital ring $ E= \langle κ,τ\mid 2 κ=2 τ=0,~ κ^2=κ,~ τ^2=τ,~ κτ=κ,~ τκ=τ\rangle$. Initially, we examine the residue and torsion codes of various hulls of $E$-linear codes and obtain an explicit form of the generator matrix of the hull of a free $E$-linear code. Then, we propose four build-up construction methods to construct codes with a larger length and hull-rank from codes with a smaller length and hull-rank. Some illustrative examples are also given to support our build-up construction methods. Subsequently, we study the permutation equivalence of two free $E$-linear codes and discuss the hull-variation problem. As an application, we classify optimal free $E$-linear codes for lengths up to $8$.