Related papers: Computing the fixing group of a rational function

Let $K$ be a function field of characteristic $p\geq0$ or a number field over which the $abc$ conjecture holds, and let $\phi(x)=x^d+c \in K[x]$ be a unicritical polynomial of degree $d\geq2$ with $d \not\equiv 0,1\pmod{p}$. We completely…

We revisit the problem of deciding whether a finitely generated subgroup H is a free factor of a given free group F. Known algorithms solve this problem in time polynomial in the sum of the lengths of the generators of H and exponential in…

Recently it was shown that, for every fixed k>1, given a finite simply connected simplicial complex X, the kth homotopy group \pi_k(X) can be computed in time polynomial in the number n of simplices of X. We prove that this problem is…

Let $K$ be a field and $G$ be a finite group. Let $G$ act on the rational function field $K(x(g):g\in G)$ by $K$ automorphisms defined by $g\cdot x(h)=x(gh)$ for any $g,h\in G$. Denote by $K(G)$ the fixed field $K(x(g):g\in G)^G$. Noether's…

We present a polynomial time algorithm to compute any fixed number of the highest coefficients of the Ehrhart quasi-polynomial of a rational simplex. Previously such algorithms were known for integer simplices and for rational polytopes of…

Functional graphs (FGs) model the graph structures used to analyse the behaviour of functions from a discrete set to itself. In turn, such functions are used to study real complex phenomena evolving in time. As the systems involved can be…

Let $K$ be a field and $G$ be a finite group. Let $G$ act on the rational function field $K(x(g):g\in G)$ by $K$-automorphisms defined by $g\cdot x(h)=x(gh)$ for any $g,h\in G$. Denote by $K(G)$ the fixed field $K(x(g):g\in G)^G$. Noether's…

Fix an odd prime $p$, and let $F$ be a field containing a primitive $p$th root of unity. It is known that a $p$-rigid field $F$ is characterized by the property that the Galois group $G_F(p)$ of the maximal $p$-extension $F(p)/F$ is a…

We reveal a complexity chasm, separating the trinomial and tetranomial cases, for solving univariate sparse polynomial equations over certain local fields. First, for any fixed field $K\in\{\mathbb{Q}_2,\mathbb{Q}_3,\mathbb{Q}_5,\ldots\}$,…

The action of the absolute Galois group $\text{Gal}(K^{\text{ksep}}/K)$ of a global field $K$ on a tree $T(\phi, \alpha)$ of iterated preimages of $\alpha \in \mathbb{P}^1(K)$ under $\phi \in K(x)$ with $\text{deg}(\phi) \geq 2$ induces a…

For a finite group $G$, we introduce a generalization of norm relations in the group algebra $\mathbb Q[G]$. We give necessary and sufficient criteria for the existence of such relations and apply them to obtain relations between the…

Let $f$ be an irreducible polynomial of prime degree $p\geq 5$ over $\QQ$, with precisely $k$ pairs of complex roots. Using a result of Jens H\"{o}chsmann (1999), we show that if $p\geq 4k+1$ then $\Gal(f/\QQ)$ is isomorphic to $A_{p}$ or…

Let $L(X)$ be a monic $q$-linearized polynomial over $F_q$ of degree $q^n$, where $n$ is an odd prime. Recently Gow and McGuire showed that the Galois group of $L(X)/X-t$ over the field of rational functions $F_q(t)$ is $GL_n(q)$ unless…

A rational function $f(x)$ is rationally summable if there exists a rational function $g(x)$ such that $f(x)=g(x+1)-g(x)$. Detecting whether a given rational function is summable is an important and basic computational subproblem that…

Let $\mathbb{K}$ be the algebraic closure of a finite field $\mathbb{F}_q$ of odd characteristic $p$. For a positive integer $m$ prime to $p$, let $F=\mathbb{K}(x,y)$ be the transcendency degree $1$ function field defined by…

Let $k$ be any field, $G$ be a finite group. Let $G$ act on the rational function field $k(x_g:g\in G)$ by $k$-automorphisms defined by $h\cdot x_g=x_{hg}$ for any $g,h\in G$. Denote by $k(G)=k(x_g:g\in G)^G$ the fixed field. Noether's…

Given a number field $k$, we show that, for many finite groups $G$, all the Galois extensions of $k$ with Galois group $G$ cannot be obtained by specializing any given finitely many Galois extensions $E/k(T)$ with Galois group $G$ and $E/k$…

In this paper we discuss applications of our earlier work in studying certain Galois groups and splitting fields of rational functions in $\mathbb Q\left(X_0(N)\right)$ using Hilbert's irreducibility theorem and modular forms. We also…

A polynomial time algorithm to give a complete description of all subfields of a given number field was given in an article by van Hoeij et al. This article reports on a massive speedup of this algorithm. This is primary achieved by our new…

This note presents Galois theory for finite fields. It was written as a handout for the MAT401 course ``Polynomial equations and fields'' taught at the University of Toronto in Spring 2026. We use without proofs some basic properties of…