Related papers: Finding rational points on elliptic curves using 6…
Let $E$ be an elliptic curve over a quartic field $K$. By the Mordell-Weil theorem, $E(K)$ is a finitely generated group. We determine all the possibilities for the torsion group $E(K)_{tor}$ where $K$ ranges over all quartic fields $K$ and…
Watkins' conjecture asserts that the rank of an elliptic curve is upper bounded by the $2$-adic valuation of its modular degree. We show that this conjecture is satisfied when $E$ is any quadratic twist of an elliptic curve with rational…
This master thesis describes how Selmer groups can be used to determine the Mordell-Weil group of elliptic curves over a number field K. The Mordell-Weil Theorem states that $E(K) = E(K)_{tors} \times Z^r$, where $r$ is the rank of $E$, and…
Let $E/\bbq$ be an elliptic curve defined over $\bbq$ with conductor $N$ and $\gq$ the absolute Galois group of an algebraic closure $\bar{\bbq}$ of $\bbq$. We prove that for every $\sigma\in \gq$, the Mordell-Weil group $E(\oqs)$ of $E$…
Given a non-isotrivial elliptic curve over $\mathbb{Q}(t)$ with large Mordell-Weil rank, we explain how one can build, for suitable small primes $p$, infinitely many fields of degree $p^2-1$ whose ideal class group has a large $p$-torsion…
We describe a method for bounding the rank of an elliptic curve under the assumptions of the Birch and Swinnerton-Dyer conjecture and the generalized Riemann hypothesis. As an example, we compute, under these conjectures, exact upper bounds…
Over the past two years we have improved several of the (Mordell-Weil) rank records for elliptic curves over Q and nonconstant elliptic curves over Q(t). For example, we found the first example of a curve E/Q with 28 independent points P_i…
We give several new constructions for moderate rank elliptic curves over $\mathbb{Q}(T)$. In particular we construct infinitely many rational elliptic surfaces (not in Weierstrass form) of rank 6 over $\mathbb{Q}$ using polynomials of…
We count the number of rational elliptic curves of bounded naive height that have a rational $N$-isogeny, for $N \in \{2,3,4,5,6,8,9,12,16,18\}$. For some $N$, this is done by generalizing a method of Harron and Snowden. For the remaining…
Given a curve X of the form y^p = h(x) over a number field, one can use descents to obtain explicit bounds on the Mordell-Weil rank of the Jacobian or to prove that the curve has no rational points. We show how, having performed such a…
Let $ E $ be an elliptic curve defined over a number field, the conjecture of Birch and Swinnerton-Dyer (BSD, for short) asserts a deep relation between the group $ E(K) $ of rational points and the $ L-$function $ L(E/K, s)$ of $ E $ at $…
We show that elliptic curves whose Mordell-Weil groups are finitely generated over some infinite extensions of $\Q$, can be used to show the Diophantine undecidability of the rings of integers and bigger rings contained in some infinite…
We study an infinite family of Mordell curves (i.e. the elliptic curves in the form y^2=x^3+n, n \in Z) over Q with three explicit integral points. We show that the points are independent in certain cases. We describe how to compute bounds…
A rational Diophantine triple is a set of three nonzero rational a,b,c with the property that ab+1, ac+1, bc+1 are perfect squares. We say that the elliptic curve y^2 = (ax+1)(bx+1)(cx+1) is induced by the triple {a,b,c}. In this paper, we…
Most systematic tables of data associated to ranks of elliptic curves order the curves by conductor. Recent developments, led by work of Bhargava-Shankar studying the average sizes of $n$-Selmer groups, have given new upper bounds on the…
Let h be a p-isogeny of elliptic curves. We describe how to perform h-descents on the nontrivial elements in the Shafarevich-Tate group which are killed by the dual isogeny h'. This makes computation of p-Selmer groups of elliptic curves…
We give a simple proof of the well-known divisibility by 2 condition for rational points on elliptic curves with rational 2-torsion. As an application of the explicit division by $2^n$ formulas obtained in Sec.2, we construct versal…
Let $\mathsf{E}/\mathbb{Q}$ be an elliptic curve. By the modularity theorem, it admits a surjection from a modular curve $X_0(N) \to \mathsf{E}$, and the minimal degree among such maps is called the modular degree of $\mathsf{E}$. By the…
We consider the parametric family of elliptic curves over $\mathbb{Q}$ of the form $E_{m} : y^{2} = x(x - n_{1})(x - n_{2}) + t^{2}$, where $n_{1}$, $n_{2}$ and $t$ are particular polynomial expressions in an integral variable $m$. In this…
We introduce the use of $p$-descent techniques for elliptic surfaces over a perfect field of characteristic not $2$ or $3$. Under mild hypotheses, we obtain an upper bound for the rank of a non-constant elliptic surface. When $p=2$, this…